Connecting people across southeast Michigan to improve the Rouge River—for enjoyment today and for generations to come.
Rouge Rescue 2025
Rouge Rescue is your time to act! Make your world better, starting from your backyard and up:
- VOLUNTEER: get your hands dirty planting trees, cleaning up the river, and more!
- LEARN & EXPERIENCE: Check out some great resources on each week’s topics and join us for more virtual and in-person educational programming throughout the month!
- DONATE: make a difference for the Rouge River! Or make Rouge Rescue every day by becoming a member, supporting all the amazing programming all year ’round!
Throughout the spring, summer, and fall, sign-up for fantastic activities to restore and protect the Rouge River. There is something for every interest and skill level.
No experience is needed. Work side-by-side with friends and experts on exciting, hands-on projects. We supply the tools, the materials and the know-how, while you supply the fun and enthusiasm. So, stay tuned, and check often. All new projects will be posted below. Explore the events, find your passion, and sign up!
Rescue the Rouge all Month!
Week 1: Deforestation & Biodiversity Week
Wildlife that can be found in the Rouge River watershed include various amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, plants, and mammals. As more of the watershed becomes developed or urbanized, fewer areas of wildlife habitat remain. It is also important to remember that fauna (animals) and flora (plants) need a healthy river and watershed just as much as we do. A diverse wildlife population indicates a healthier ecosystem that is more resilient to future effects from climate change.
Week 2: Heat & Emissions Week
Trees and other plants help cool the environment, making vegetation a simple and effective way to reduce urban heat islands. Trees also absorb harmful emissions and air pollution like greenhouse gases. Trees also provide aesthetic value, reduce noise, and valuable habitat for wildlife.
Week 3: Flooding & Rain Week
Living in Michigan, we are fortunate to be surrounded by 20% of the World’s fresh surface water, and it’s all our jobs to help protect this vital resource! Pollutants like fertilizers, oils, trash, etc., can wash into our local rivers and Great Lakes and can be harmful to fish and our sources for drinking water. We can help invest in our climate future and mitigate future flooding events with more native trees and native plant rain gardens across the watershed to manage stormwater and help prevent more sever flooding events for our neighbors downstream.
Week 4: Water Quality Week
Today, one of the biggest sources of water pollution in the Rouge River is no longer from large manufacturing plants, but from each individual home and property in the watershed (i.e. non-point source pollution, coming for multiple/many sources). Having healthy lawncare habitats, not dumping anything you’re not supposed to down home drains and storm drains, and reducing your water use can all help improve our local waterways!
