"Miami-Dade County has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world, but it's not easy to keep them that way," said Eric Woolworth, President of The HEAT Group's Business Operations. "We hope that our work on Crandon Park Beach will inspire residents of Miami-Dade County to join the cause and assist in preserving our environment so that future generations can enjoy it as well."

Corporate sponsors that will also be represented include HP, Silestone, Jordan Brand, Waste Management and Miami-Dade County. HP chose to partner with the Miami HEAT for the Beach Sweep specifically based on the team's level of community involvement and their numerous, year-round outreach activities.

"We wanted to work with a team that has been a source of community inspiration, both on and off the court," said Gabi Zedlmayer, Vice President of Global Social Innovation, HP. "With all of their impressive community programs and partnerships, it was an easy choice for us to want to be involved and work with the HEAT for NBA Green Week 2010."

During NBA Green Week 2010, each of the league's 30 teams will encourage fans to participate in greening efforts by hosting community service events, including tree plantings, recycling drives, park clean-up days, the creation of live, learn or play spaces using environmentally friendly materials, and hosting in-arena Go Green Awareness Nights featuring auctions to support environmental protection programs and promotions to encourage fans to implement green habits.

Miami-Dade Parks made the beach clean-up and sand dune restoration opportunities available to the HEAT as part of its "Be A Parks Champion" Volunteerism and Adopt-A-Park programs, which respectively enable businesses and organizations throughout Miami-Dade County to give back to their communities by championing parks through a wide variety of volunteer activities, including beach conservation and playground refurbishment, as well as, through donations of funds, raw materials and recreation equipment. The HEAT's volunteer effort included the donation and planting of more than 500 sea oats.

"We applaud the HEAT for making this effort to both educate the community about the impact littering can have on our local environment and to help protect the county's beaches from erosion," said Miami-Dade Parks Director Jack Kardys. "The HEAT's effort to serve as Parks Champions today will leave a lasting legacy for the next generation."

This season, the NBA is continuing to take steps to become a more environmentally responsible organization. To learn more about what the NBA and its teams are doing to "Go Green," please visit www.nba.com/green.

For information about volunteering with Miami-Dade Parks, contact Angie Gomez at 305-961-2781. To make a donation to the Miami-Dade Parks Adopt-A-Park program, contact Donna Peyton at 305-755-7804.

The Miami HEAT is proud to welcome Assist-Card as the Presenting Sponsor for the 2009-10 season.

About Miami-Dade Park & Recreation (Miami-Dade Parks):
The third largest county park system in the United States, consisting of 262 parks and more than 12,668 acres of land, Miami-Dade Park & Recreation is one of the most unique park and recreation systems in the world. Made up of more than just playgrounds and athletic fields, it also comprises after-school, sports-development and summer-camp programs; programs for seniors and people with disabilities; educational nature centers and nature preserves; environmental restoration efforts; arts and culture programs and events; the renowned Miami MetroZoo and Deering Estate; the Crandon Tennis Center, home of the Sony Ericsson Open-the USTA's fifth largest tennis tournament; golf courses; beaches; marinas; campgrounds; pools; and more.