On Saturday, 20 volunteers helped Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTnRB) to remove 7,381 lbs. of trash (nearly four tons) from the Tennessee River during the 5 th annual Chickamauga Lake Cleanup presented by iSustain.

This is the most trash removed during a single iSustain sponsored Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful cleanup. Some of the trash items collected by the volunteers included:

111 bags of trash
21 tires
27.5 steel drums
396 square feet of Styrofoam
140 lbs. of scrap metal
Half of a large pontoon deck

The 2025 cleanup was made possible thanks to a $7,500 sponsorship from iSustain Recycling, a national sustainability services company that processes over 334 million pounds of recyclable products each year.

In sponsoring Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful cleanups over the last five years, iSustain has helped 149 volunteers to remove 33,241 lbs. of trash from Chickamauga Lake of the Tennessee River.

“This annual cleanup sponsored by iSustain is a great example of the true impact that our volunteers and partners make possible when we’re able to pull together for our river,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTnRB Executive Director. “The impressive impact like the 16.5 tons of trash removed by volunteers at iSustain cleanups over the last five years will continue to contribute to the community for years to come, probably in more ways than we can measure.”

Volunteers, including iSustain team members, celebrate one of the many trash piles they collected on Chickamauga lake on Saturday, June 7, 2025.

Mark Huber, Vice President of Business Development for iSustain and KTnRB Board President, joined the cleanup with staff from the company as well as his family. He and his wife, Dawn Huber, who is owner of iSustain, have also adopted Tennessee River Mile 489 on Chickamauga Lake through KTnRB’s Adopt a River Mile program.

An iSustain team member rolls a tire to the trash pile at the Chickamauga Lake Cleanup presented by iSustain.

“It’s always awesome to get out here with our team, our families, and the community to do something that really matters,” said Huber. “This cleanup isn’t just about picking up trash—it’s about showing what’s possible when people care enough to roll up their sleeves and take action.

At iSustain, we spend our days helping companies recycle better, but days like this remind us why it all matters. Cleaner rivers, healthier communities, and a chance to inspire the next generation to think differently about waste—that’s the kind of impact we’re proud to be part of.”

Volunteers enjoy a boat ride to the next island to be cleaned at the Chickamauga Lake Cleanup presented by iSustain held on June 7, 2025.

The event series was also held in partnership with the Keep Soddy Daisy Beautiful, who assisted with local volunteer recruitment and participated in the cleanup.

The cleanup yielded enough volunteer-collected trash to fill up two dumpsters donated by Absolute Waste Management of Chattanooga, Tenn.

For a list of upcoming cleanups with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/upcomingcleanups.