Portland’s Big Float celebrating the Willamette River

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Hundreds of Portlanders gathered underneath the Marquam Bridge to float across the Willamette River. The first annual event was organised by the Willamette Riverkeeper and is a celebration of the which now is clean for recreational use. Portland, OR, USA, 31/07/2011.

According to recent reports published by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the City of Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services, the water in the Willamette is clean and safe to swim in. Only during Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) issues is it not safe to enter the water for obvious reasons.

Today’s event saw hundreds of people float across the river with many walking back over the Hawthorne Bridge for another go.