FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MAY 20, 2022
Jamie Smith, Democratic Candidates, and SDDP Clean Up Big Sioux River
Sioux Falls – The South Dakota Democratic Party (SDDP), Democratic candidates, and volunteers worked with Friends of the Big Sioux River today to clean up a section of the Big Sioux River in Sertoma Park. As part of the SDDP Democrats Care initiative, this project collected [xx] bags of trash from along the Big Sioux River.
Participants in today’s event issued statements following today’s project:
Gubernatorial Candidate Jamie Smith:
“South Dakotans roll up their sleeves and pitch in when there’s a problem. It’s clear the Big Sioux River has a problem. That’s why we are teaming up with the South Dakota Democratic Party today in order to lend a hand in that cleanup effort.”
Senate Candidate Liz Larson (D-10):
“South Dakota has close to 100,000 miles of rivers and streams of which close to 80% do not meet the environmental standards – according to SD Dept of Ag and Natural Resources. This isn’t a recent occurrence; data on water quality in South Dakota has been this way since I started paying attention – over 30 years ago, and probably before that. There is an excellent practical and business case for being better stewards for such a massive resource. These issues don’t get enough air time in public dialog and my hope is that this can change.”
SDDP Executive Director Berk Ehrmantraut:
“It’s great to get folks out giving back to our community, and that’s what the Democrats Care initiative is really about. As Democrats, this an opportunity to show our South Dakota values in action.”
People interested in participating in Democrats Care events can sign up for updates about future events at: mobilize.us/sddp.
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