BEAUTY TREATMENT 1,300 PEOPLE TURN OUT TO HELP CLEAN UP RIVER CHANNEL.

Byline: Susan Abram Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - Southern California's last natural waterway received some love and tender care Saturday, as more than 1,300 residents joined to celebrate the beauty, history and preservation of the Santa Clara River.

The city's 10th annual River Rally drew volunteers from schools and churches, civic organizations and families, who were eager to grab a garbage bag and comb the meandering channel's sandy bottom and scan through cottonwood trees for anything that didn't belong.

By about noon, dozens of piles of garbage bags sat stacked, waiting for pickup, along with rusted shopping carts, a tire, large sheets of rubber foam, steel and plastic pipes, and a mangled mountain bike.

``It's important for us to be here, not only as a service to the community, but you always want to make sure you support the community where you live,'' said local resident Vince Davis, who had just emerged from the river cleanup with his three children, Michael, 15, Mia, 11, and Maya, 7.

``I would hate to see the river used as a refuge or a dump.''

Indeed, the Santa Clara River, which runs through the middle of the city, can sometimes be overlooked because it resembles a desert during the hot, dry months.

But many residents agree that in all seasons, the river is a part of living in Santa Clarita.

``I think people don't really think of it as a river,'' agreed Jason McClure, a youth pastor for Heart of the Canyon Church, who led a group of 30 young people to help in cleaning. The group found blankets and clothes and bricks inside the waterway. ``But it's important to take ownership of your community.''

Over the years, the river has become the center of local and statewide debates between environmentalists and developers as new housing project proposals inch toward its edges.

The river, which runs more than 100 miles from the hills of Acton to the ocean north of Oxnard, is the wildlife artery that sustains the region's entire ecosystem, environmentalists say.

This year, the city and the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County kicked off a campaign to encourage residents to stop using salt-based water softeners, which threatens the river because of the high concentration of chloride.

Dozens of vendors from local and county agencies and environmental groups sat inside a large tent as part of the rally, educating residents on the importance of preserving the watershed. Participants received free plants, bags of pamphlets, and were offered the chance to hold a gopher snake, courtesy of the Placerita Canyon Nature Center.

``I think the myth in society is that we don't have a community feel here,'' said Canyon Country resident Debbie Miley, who walked the waterway with her children, twins Caitlin and Jessica, both 12, and their friend Cassie Rogers, also 12. ``(The river) makes the community come together.''

Susan Abram, [phone]

susan.abram(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Volunteers armed with trash bags pitch in to clean up the Santa Clara River on Saturday during the 10th River Rally.

(2 -- color) Rusted shopping carts, a wrecked bike and bags and bags of trash were collected Saturday in the Santa Clara River bed during the 10th annual River Rally.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer