Cleanup Results
- 1.05 Tons of trash collected (2,100 pounds)
- 5 Tires
- 492 Overall Participants
- 447 Pre-Registrants
- 45 Behind the Scenes volunteers
2023 | 2022 | % Change | 16 Year Average | |
Participants:
| 492 People
| 584 People | -16% | 471 people |
Trash Collected: | 1.05 Tons | 1.83 Tons | -43% | 3.30 Tons |
Tires Collected: | 5 Tires | 14 Tires | -64% | 21 Tires |

While the total trash collected does vary from year to year depending on a variety of factors, we believe that your participation is making a difference! Also, our lowest collection year was in 2016 where 0.77 Tons of trash was collected. That year, like this year, the Cleanup was preceded by winter storms, so maybe a significant amount of trash was washed downstream into the lakes and/or was inaccessible to Cleanup volunteers in debris piled up by large creek flows.
2023 Granite Creek Cleanup was
Saturday April 22nd, 2023
Granite Creek Park | 8 AM – Noon
- Make a Difference
- Help Clean Up Your Community
- It’s Free!
(in exchange for a few hours of your service to the community)
- Cleanup T-shirt for all Pre-Registered Participants
Required Pre-Registration is now closed
Ways for You to be Involved
This annual event not only cleans up and beautifies the community, it also provides an opportunity for people to come together for a common cause and make a difference.
Cleanup Participants
500 of your friends and neighbors will be working together to clean up the creeks! The Pre-Registration deadline is March 31st. We encourage you to register now and ensure your spot.
Required Pre-Registration is now closed
Behind the Scenes Volunteers
Many people are needed to Help Behind the Scenes before, during, and after the Cleanup. It’s a great way to be involved for those who aren’t so keen to tromp around outside getting physical.
Sponsorship
Granite Creek Cleanup would not be possible without event Sponsors. They represent a rich cross-section of businesses, NGOs, and individuals in the community.
Who Makes it All Possible?
You / Volunteers
Since 2007, volunteers have contributed over 7,000 hours valued at almost $400,000 in service to the community! An average of 470 volunteers turn out each year with pre-registration climbing to 77% in 2019. COVID Adaptations in 2021 and 2022, led to REQUIRED PRE-REGISTRATION.
We hope you’ll join us.
Sponsors make this event possible! Historically, Sponsors have represented a rich cross-section of Prescott ranging from sandwich shops to public utilities, from home builders to other not-for-profit organizations, from civic groups to individuals.
Sponsorships are needed and available in both cash and in-kind categories.
Sponsorships support the event through both cash and in-kind contributions.
Contact us now to discuss your Cleanup Sponsorship for 2023.
Looking ahead to next year?
Contact us to discuss your
Cleanup Sponsorship for 2024.
Event Details
When:
- Saturday, April 22nd, 2023
- Check-In 8 AM – 12 Noon
- Collected materials need to be placed at pick up locations by 5 PM Sunday evening
(the City of Prescott Solid Waste Division will collect cleaned up materials early Monday morning)
Where:
- The Prescott, AZ area – Upper Granite Creek Watershed creeks, lakes, and parks
- Contactless Drive-Up Sign-In and Materials Pick-up at:
Granite Creek Park
554 N 6th St Prescott, AZ 86301 (Enter from 6th St.)
- Trash Drop-off locations are conveniently located throughout town. Locations will be provided to Pre-Registered participants.
How:
- Prescott Creeks will distribute volunteer materials on Saturday morning (8- Noon) from Granite Creek Park.
- The drive-up Sign-In process is intended to be as efficient as possible and will occur as follows:
- Volunteer Event Staff will pre-package materials bags for pre-registered groups
(Note: Groups can be made up of as few as one (1) person or as many as twenty (20) people.) - A representative for each Pre-Registered group will drive through to Sign-in for their group and collect packaged materials
- Materials will be handed through the vehicle window or placed in the trunk of the registrant vehicle
- Distributed materials will include:
- Event information, Map(s) showing overall area, assigned Cleanup Location, and Drop-Off location(s)
- T-shirts for each registered group member, trash bags, and masks
- Sponsor materials
- Volunteer Event Staff will pre-package materials bags for pre-registered groups
Required Pre-Registration is now closed

Much of the Cleanup occurs on and around the Greenways Trail System
Event History & Results:
Originating in the 1980’s, the Granite Creek Cleanup was organized by the city-sponsored Keep Prescott Beautiful committee until 2006. Prescott Creeks began actively participating in the Cleanup in 1995 when Watson Woods Riparian Preserve was established. Prescott Creeks was often mistaken as the event coordinator (because “Creek” was in each name…?). After the 2006 Cleanup event, Keep Prescott Beautiful approached Prescott Creeks and asked that it assume formal leadership of the event to carry on the springtime rite of improving the community. Prescott Creeks was honored to be asked and agreed.
Since 2007 Prescott Creeks has worked with over 7,000 volunteers who donated 17,000 hours of their time to collect almost 52 tons (104,000 pounds) of trash and debris from the community. The event is made possible annually by community volunteers, generous sponsors, Yavapai County GIS, and the City of Prescott.
2023 | 2022 | % Change | ||
Participants: | 584 People | 584 People | + 21% | |
Trash Collected: | 1.83 Tons | 1.22 Tons | + 50% | |
Tires Collected: | 14 Tires | 12 Tires | + 15% |
2022 Trash Audit Results
Prescott Creeks sampled ~38% of the trash collected during the Cleanup and found 57% of it to be Plastic! Trash fell into 18 categories ranging from plastic to bone to yard waste.
Click here to see the details from the 2022 Cleanup Trash Audit.
584 people worked together on April 23rd at the Granite Creek Cleanup! Nice! They made a difference! It is always such a pleasure to work with community volunteers doing their part to achieve a common goal – make Prescott and its waterways better by being cleaned up. Thank you!
Two days later (Monday 4/25), after the City of Prescott had picked up the collected trash from about 20 locations around town, they reported a total weight of 1.83 Tons of trash and debris – including 14 tires!
We also spent a few hours that morning conducting a first-ever audit of the material collected. This involved manually going through the trash volunteers collected in the field trying to get an idea of what was in it. Volunteers Lee Baldwin and Phil Taska, along with Brady Higgs at the City of Prescott Waste Transfer Station, all get special recognition for their participation in this task!
Initial Results Are In:
Event Follow Up Correspondence
SAVE THE DATE:
2023 Granite Creek Cleanup
Saturday, April 22, 2023 (Earth Day!)
Save the Date:
Granite Creek Cleanup – 20 April 2024
Required Pre-Registration is now closed
Thank you for your interest in cleaning up Prescott’s creeks. If you missed the deadline,
we encourage you to clean up on your own at a location you care about.
Report Large Debris
Sometimes it is too hard to collect during the Cleanup. Report it to us using your mobile device. Click the button below to report large debris that you find but cannot collect during the Cleanup. We’ll get the information and route it to the proper authority for follow up.


Event Approach
To continue a conservative approach adopted in 2021, the Cleanup will feature all the successful and efficient COVID adaptations from last year’s event
- Pre-Registration Required
- Dispersed Outdoor Locations
- Limited Group Size
(20 people maximum) - Contactless Sign-In & Materials Pick-up
With all event planning decisions made while the Omicron variant was surging at the beginning of the year, Prescott Creeks is committed to bringing a COVID-conscious Cleanup event to the community. Now as a Pre-Registration only, dispersed field activity, we have adapted procedures to safely provide community members with the opportunity to make the Prescott area a more attractive and safer place for everyone to enjoy.

Cleanup After Party - April 23rd
Founding Fathers Collective
(218 N Granite St.)
9 AM – 6 PM
30% off any purchases
while wearing this year’s Granite Creek Cleanup
event t-shirt shirt
