Rouge Rundown – Salty Situation | Movie Night | It’s Paddle Time | Spring Plants & More

Calling all previous and prospective Bug Hunters! The Friends of the Rouge Spring Bug Hunt will be on Saturday, April 12th at 10am. For this event, we will be meeting at Schoolcraft College, where we will have refreshments, meet with our teams, and then head out to the river. 

For these Bug Hunt events, volunteers drive the data collection for Rouge River health by searching and sifting through samples of leaves, wood, and stones to inventory the aquatic insects, crayfish, snails, and clams that make up the bottom of the river food chain. By participating in this event, you would be giving the Rouge River a ‘health check-up’ so that we can document the healthy progress the Rouge is making, while also identifying any problem-areas where water quality issues need to be addressed.

Mark your calendars for a night at the movies with Friends on Tuesday, March 25 at 7:00pm at the Penn Theater for a screening of Lost Rivers.

In honor of World Water Day, Dr. Jacob Napieralski, Ph.D., Dr. Marie Garcia, Ph.D., and Landscape Architect Nancy Darga, will lead a discussion and a post screening Q&A session about the importance of preserving our waterways and bringing awareness to the “lost rivers” that exist in your Rouge River community. This event is in partnership with The Penn Theater in Plymouth and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, you are invited to enjoy National Science on Screen Day!  

Complimentary tickets at the door.

Penn Theater | 760 Penniman Ave, Plymouth, MI 48170

It’s the End of Winter Paddle Trip! Join your Friends for a self-return paddle trip from Ford Field Park to celebrate the end of Winter. The event is Saturday March 22 from 9:30 AM to 12 PM. Paddlers have the option to rent a canoe or kayak or bring their own boat. Please note, fees are due in advance for all attendees.  

New to paddling? While this event is for experienced paddlers, future events will be a great opportunity for you to experience a rouge trip for the first time! Visit the link below for more information about upcoming Water Trail Events. 

Are you ready to let the rain work for you? Now’s the perfect time to shop for rain barrels, Michigan native plants, and more! Let us help you make your garden beautiful—with a little help from the rain! 

Pick-up your purchases and join the fun at the “same-day sale” for plant art, individual plants, trees and shrubs, and more!

Saturday, May 17th
Livonia Department of Public Works
12973 Farmington Rd, Livonia, MI 48150

ORDER DEADLINES:
Mail order plant flats: Sun, March 30th
Pick-up native plant flats, rain barrels & accessories:  Wed, April 30th

Hey Friends! Did you know, your volunteer efforts to measure River salt during bug hunts led to even more great River science. Thanks to data collected by caring bug hunters like you, your Friends team embarked on a watershed-wide study to investigate salt levels in the Rouge River with funding from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) Nonpoint Source Program grant. Streams were sampled for salt throughout the River system to understand how the health of the Rouge is changing in both dry conditions and after a rain or snowmelt. After sample analysis from an EGLE-approved lab, almost 90% of these sites had levels that were toxic to aquatic organisms, like bugs!  Click the buttons below to explore findings and discover what you can do in your community to lessen salt use.

This workforce development program is designed to provide you with pathways towards living wage employment through the maintenance of important landscaping features that protect the Rouge River, Detroit River, and Lake Erie. 

This 6 week, 12 class course will teach you how to weed native plant gardens, identify native plants vs. weeds, conduct photo monitoring, identify soil types, understand and correct erosion and sediment issues, transplant and thin garden plants, and more! NO prior experience needed! 

There are three cohort options this year: 
Cohort 1: April 15 – May 22, 2025
Cohort 2: June 3 – July 17, 2025 (excluding the week of July 4th)
Cohort 3: July 22 – August 28, 2025

Did you know that the Rouge is a federally designated Area of Concern? This designation calls for special projects and attention so that your Watershed can be restored to the same quality level as  neighboring watersheds.

To help steer meaningful community engagement around future projects to delist the Rouge River Watershed as an Area of Concern, please click below and share what you think! This survey was developed in partnership with the Michigan Environmental Council and other Areas of Concern around Michigan to better understand the success of community engagement around projects that have happened across the watershed, maybe even in your community.