Mattaponi River Clean-Up Project
The Mattaponi River Clean-up Youth Job Training and Employment Program will offer many benefits to Caroline County including stewardship, job training and environmental awareness for the young adults employed. Removal of trash and an inventory report will enhance the Mattaponi as resource for the community and offer additional opportunities to leverage this resource. StreamSweepers will train 5 local age young adults (18 and over) to clean and inventory 13 miles of the Mattaponi River in Caroline County, VA. The stretch to be cleaned begins at the Rt. 607 crossing at Paige and extends to the Rt. 301 crossing. The proposed project is partially funded by Caroline County, and from a grant from the Luck Foundation. For the project to be completed, we will need to raise an additional $15,000. This figure includes the cost of all supervisory personnel, equipment, and liability insurances and Workers Compensation insurance for all employees. Outreach to landowners may begin as early as January 2018 as access from landowners will need to be secured about every mile or two along the river. For more information please contact us by email or by calling our office at (540)-672-2542.
We hope that residents and business owners as well as other foundations will support this project.
The Mattaponi River is a 103-mile-long tributary of the York River estuary and rises as four streams in Spotsylvania County, each of which is given a shorter piece of the Mattaponi’s name. They are the Mat River and the Ta River which join in Spotsylvania County to form the Matta River; the Po River and the Ni River which join in Caroline County to form the Poni River; and the Matta and Poni Rivers which join in Caroline County to form the Mattaponi River.
From the confluence of its tributaries, the Mattaponi flows generally southeast through Caroline County, where it collects the South River at the southern edge of the Mattaponi Wildlife Management Area. In its lower reaches, it defines the boundary between King William and King and Queen counties. At West Point, it meets the Pamunkey River to form the York River.
With little development or industry on the river, the Mattaponi provides a diverse array of scenery and angling opportunity. Beginning as a small, scenic, non-tidal stream draining much of Caroline County and serving as the border between King and Queen and King William counties, the upper Mattaponi has limited public access. Moving downstream from Zoar State Forest towards West Point the river changes character drastically from a small non-tidal stream to a large tidal river lined by vast expanses of marsh. (courtesy VDGIF)
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