Note: The best Guidelines are using good planning, good judgment, safety first and obeying the laws.

Protocol:
Determine banks and/or in-river areas that need to be cleaned.
Determine property owners.
Get landowner permission to clean up and permits if needed
a) Individual owner
b) Town or city or borough
c) State of CT
Arrange with Public Works Department or DOT to pick up the collected debris at a specific location and time.

Get a commitment from people and/or groups to participate on a given day and time. Let them know in advance that a waiver must be signed saving the sponsoring organization harmless from any injury or illness that may result from the clean up.

Choosing a Clean-up Time
The best time to clean up riverbanks is October through March. After a killing frost in the fall, many ticks and most poison ivy and Japanese Knotwood should have died.
The best time to clean up river a river bottom is during the lowest flow times (usually summer). The Army Corps of Engineers may be asked if the flow of the Naugatuck River could be reduced during clean-up times. It has control of the flow through the Thomaston Dam.

Clean-up Time
Establish a Command Center at clean-up site to be manned at all times during the
clean-up. Recommended items at the Center include: cell phone and emergency and important phone numbers, first-aid supplies, water, gloves, plastic bags, insect repellant, buckets for broken glass and syringes

All participants must register and sign a waiver or agree verbally saving the sponsoring organization harmless from any injury or illness that may result from the clean-up.
The Clean-up Guidelines must be read or heard. Note: See the Clean-up Guidelines that follow. Participants should take the cell phone number of the Command Center with them. Provide bags and gloves to participants

Clean-up Guidelines
Use caution by and in the river. Hazards include: broken glass, rusted metal, sealed containers, used syringes,
Do NOT open sealed containers or handle syringes or pick up broken glass with your hands,
Put glass and syringes in buckets.
Natural hazards include: ticks, spiders, snakes, snapping turtles, poison ivy, poison oak, slippery rocks and soil.
Wear long pants, long sleeve shirt, hat, gloves, appropriate footwear and sunglasses.
Work with a partner. Take the cell phone number of the Command Center with you.
Stay out of the water unless directed to do so.
Stay away from railroad tracks.
Follow directions about what debris must be separated if any (recyclable things).
Bring all debris to predetermined location.
If you are injured, notify Command Center immediately.

The above are suggested Guidelines. It is not a complete list. The best Guidelines are using good planning, good judgment, safety first and obeying the laws.