Monthly Shoreline Cleanups Return to Lake of the Isles

The cleanups meet from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. along the footpath at Euclid Place and East Lake of the Isles Parkway. The association has set three dates, June 13, July 11 and Aug. 8, and asks volunteers to check in at the posted meeting point. No registration or experience is required, families are welcome, and the group provides bags and gloves, so volunteers need bring little more than sturdy shoes. Dates can shift in bad weather, and the confirmed schedule is posted on the association's calendar.

The sessions clear the bottles, wrappers and stray plastic that blow in off the parkway and collect along the bank between gatherings. Litter left on a lakeshore tends to wash into the water, and Lake of the Isles is part of the Chain of Lakes used for paddling, fishing and walking.

The cleanups complement the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board's shoreline approach, which favors deep-rooted native plantings along much of the bank to hold soil and filter runoff. The board owns and maintains the lakes and parkways; the day-to-day litter pickup along the Isles leans on neighborhood volunteers.

East Isles also organizes a monthly Bde Maka Ska cleanup on separate Saturdays. Both schedules are posted at eastisles.org.