Volunteer for our rivers

This is a self-guided stewardship volunteer opportunity dedicated to safeguarding the Salmon River in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA). As an IRU Salmon River Steward, your role involves actively participating in public education and self-led stewardship activities. 

The season for this program extends from August 15 to September 22, which is during the height of the Salmon Spawning Season. Stewards will be responsible for setting up an educational station to share information about river closers, the salmon life cycle, salmon redd Identification, Idaho Rivers United, the SNRA Forest Service, and Leave-no-Trace Practicesem description

Sign-up form: https://secure.everyaction.com/ln5oneLSyUudtfChXOF2Ow2

This program is dedicated to helping Idaho Rivers United maintain our adopted section of the Boise River Greenbelt.

Our adopted section of the greenbelt runs through the heart of downtown Boise from Capitol Boulevard to Broadway Avenue. Our section is a highly used area of the Boise greenbelt — in 2025, our volunteers removed nearly 500 pounds of trash from our adopted section. The volunteer support for this program has grown exponentially, and as our volunteer team grows, it is our goal to increase our efforts to neighboring sections of the greenbelt.

If you are passionate about the health of the Boise River, we encourage you to join us for an Adopt-the-Greenbelt cleanup.

Adopt-the-Greenbelt Volunteer Sign Up Form

Our Boise River Steward Ambassadors are required to organize and host two community riverbank cleanups during the 2026 program from April-October.

BRS Ambassadors select the location, time, and date for their cleanup and invite you to volunteer with them to remove debris from the banks of the Boise River. All cleanup supplies will be provided by Idaho Rivers United, but you are welcome to bring your own.

Signup here: https://secure.everyaction.com/Mws0RYeOE0CHX--AkNgyjg2

Dates/Time/Location: 

• June 1 @ 11 AM | Barber Park | Ambassador Devyn 

• June 13 @ 10 AM | Ann Morrison Park | Ambassador Sue

• June 15 @ 11 AM | Lucky Peak | Ambassador Devyn

• July 6 @ 11 AM | Location TBD | Ambassador Devyn 

• July 11 @ 10 AM | Parkcenter & Beacon | Ambassadors Kendall & Madeleine

• July 15 @ 10 AM | Veterans Memorial Park | Ambassador Candice 

• July 18 @ 8 AM | Willow Lane Athletic Complex | Ambassador Sam

• July 25 @ 8 AM | Kristin Armstrong Park | Ambassador Sam

• August 2 @ 11 AM | Location TBD | Ambassador Devyn 

• August 8 @ 10 AM | Ann Morrison Park | Ambassador Sue

• August 15 @ 10 AM | Parkcenter & Beacon | Ambassadors Kendall & Madeleine

• September 19 @ 10 AM | Parkcenter & Beacon | Ambassadors Kendall & Madeleine

• October 24 @ 10 AM | Parkcenter & Beacon | Ambassadors Kendall & Madeleine

Sign-up form coming soon, please email our Volunteer & Engagement Manager at lindsey@idahoriver.org to be added to an email list for more information regarding this cleanup.

Join Idaho Rivers United in the beautiful valley of Stanley, Idaho to celebrate the 900-mile journey that salmon and steelhead take to spawn in the headwaters of the Sawtooth Mountains. We are looking for some salmon-loving volunteers to help us promote the importance of this great migration and salmon conservation during the Sawtooth Salmon Festival!

This event is important to highlight the need to protect Idaho salmon and our team has decided to expand this festival into a weekend long celebration with speakers, panels, concerts, and so much more. We are going to be relying on our volunteers more than ever for this event and you are critical to the success of this event -- as a volunteer you will help us create a fun, educational, and positive atmosphere for our festival attendees! 

Festival dates: Aug. 28-29th

Festival location: Stanley, ID and the surrounding Sawtooth Valley

Volunteer Activities (include but are not limited to): 

• Event set-up & tear down

• Helping Vendors, musicians, and festival staff

• Assisting with Salmon Redd Tours

• Hospitality

• Green Team

• And so much more!

Eligibility: Must be at least 16 years of age (volunteers under 18 will need a waiver competed by a parent or guardian). We are unable to provide transportation or accommodations, so please be sure to plan your logistics accordingly. 

Mountain Village is offering in-town camping sites for IRU volunteers for the weekend.

Register to volunteer here: https://secure.everyaction.com/p_Pxj_gPBk2oVGMYImfTLA2

All pre-registered volunteers will be given first pritority in selecting volunteer shifts. When the schedule is available, we will send a link via email for you to select your shifts.

Questions? Contact our Volunteer Manager at lindsey@idahorivers.org

Application for Boise River Clean-ups for Businesses, Organizations, & Groups

• Please check out our available clean-up dates for our Adopt-the-Greenbelt program and the list of clean-ups led by our stewards in our Urban River Stewards program. If none of these dates work for your organization please submit an application. 

• The IRU team will review applications in January, March, June, and September. We will select 1-2 organizations depending on staff availability and notify you if your organization has been selected by phone or email. If your organization is selected each volunteer attending the clean-up will need to complete an IRU volunteer waiver.

• These programs take staff time and financial resources to host. If selected, we kindly request that your business or organization makes a financial contribution to help cover the cost and support our programs.  

Join Idaho Rivers United, 94.9 The River, and Idaho River Sports for our Annual End of Float Season Cleanup!

We're inviting 250 volunteers to join us and help clean the Boise River from Barber Park to the Garden City Library. Volunteer's efforts will have a massive impact, helping keep the Boise River clean and healthy for all.

This event isn't just a cleanup—it's a party! After all the hard work, stick around for a community celebration and afterparty hosted by 94.9 The River and Idaho River Sports. We'll have vendors, delicious food trucks, refreshing shaved ice, lively music, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and trash themed games. Plus, as a thank you for your hard work, all volunteers will be entered into a raffle for some great prizes!

Sign ups open July 2026!

We had 223 volunteers join us on Saturday, removing 1,480 pounds of trash from Kristen Armstrong Park to Eagle's Reid Merril Park -- finding a wide variety of weird finds, including a large rug, a suitcase filled with rebar, and our favorite, a bike rigged with floaties. Additionally, a couple of our volunteers from the Biglow Tea team pulled out a shopping cart that had been tossed into the Boise River.

We are beyond grateful for all of our volunteers, and the time donated to make a difference for the Boise River, the wildlife that resides within it's cooridors, and for helping create a place our local community can enjoy. A huge shout-out to the volunteers who helped lead cleanup supply stations across the Treasure Valley -- Dorian, Ashley, Madeleine, Kendall, Sue, Candice, Liz, Sash, Marisa from the Boise River Enhancement Network, and Christine from River Discovery.  

Stay tuned for the Spring 2027 date!

Idaho Rivers United's Boise River Stewards (BRS) program is a self-guided volunteer opportunity designed to create stronger advocates for the Boise River through stewardship, education, citizen science, and community engagement. The data collected through the BRS program is used to create IRU's Boise River Report Card. 

As a river steward, you are required to complete one water quality survey and three activities that contribute to the overall health of the Boise River watershed. River Stewardship activites include, but are not limited to, self-led riverbank cleanups, additional water quality surveys, and joining for an outreach opportunity to share information about the health of the Boise River and the BRS program. 

Boise River Stewards are required to attend a mandatory, in-person training on April 23rd from 5:30-7:30PM at Idaho Rivers United office located at 3380 W Americana Terr STE 140, Boise, ID 83702. Our training will provide you with the essential knowledge and tools need to successfully complete the BRS program, as well as a provide an overview on the history of the Boise River and current issues affecting its watershed. 

Notes: 

• Boise River Stewards and parents/guardians joining with stewards under the age of 16 must complete our volunteer waiver found here. 

• This program is open to all ages, but any river steward under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult or guardian during all river stewardship activities, this includes but is not limited to all trainings, river clean-ups, and events. 

• We highly encourage families to join the Boise River Stewardship program, and have adapted the program so that families can work as a team to complete the stewardship requirements listed above, meaning as a family you'll need to complete a water quality survey, and three activities that benefit the Boise River. 

Sign up to join the program by April 7, 2026!

Email any questions to our Volunteer & Engagement Manager, Lindsey Paynter. 

IRU staff’s ambitions are big, but we are a small crew and often require office help from our amazing volunteer team. If you are interested in helping IRU with various administrative tasks around the office, this is the role for you!

Email our Volunteer and Engagement Manager to learn more at lindsey@idahorivers.org.

The 2026 Idaho Falls Snake River Cleanup was incredible! We had four cleanup stations expanding from Heritage Park to Russel Freeman Park. In total we had 43 members of the local community join us to remove 542 pounds of trash. This event was a huge success, and we cannot wait to host this cleanup again next year. Please signup for our newsletter to stay informed about next year’s cleanup, and future events in the area.