From The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (Katie Steele and Bennett Boeschenstein):
Restoration efforts began in 1985 with a clean-up project on the 30-acre weed- and junk-infested Watson Island. For two years, volunteers spent countless hours cleaning the island by hand. They hauled 25 years of salvage yard scrap metal, 4,000 tires and over 400 truckloads of waste to the landfill. It was only the beginning. What began as a local clean-up project expanded into a valleywide effort to reclaim the rivers and their floodplains as social, economic, wildlife and recreational amenities — the highlight of which is the Colorado Riverfront Trail. Today, communities across the Grand Valley are connected by over 30 miles of trails. Over 450,000 visitors enjoy the neighboring Colorado River State Park to bike, fish, swim, camp, hike and boat. There are numerous community events around the rivers, including concerts, triathlons, bike rides, raft races and festivals.
More restoration coverage here.