Beach-bound this weekend?

Headed to the beach this weekend?  Here are a few tips to help you enjoy the weekend, while also being mindful of the enviorment. 

• Leave only footprints in the sand. Use garbage and recycling receptacles or bring home what you bring to the beach (carry in, carry out).
• Bring a bucket to the beach to build sandcastles and at the end of the day collect litter for trash or to recycle.
• The beach is not an ashtray. Cigarette filters are not biodegradable and can be lethal when eaten by birds and fish that mistake them for food.  Use an ashtray, bucket, or even your pocket.
• Carpool, walk, bike, or use mass transit to the beach.  Cars are a leading source of air and water pollution.  Turn off your car if idling for more than 30 seconds; this will conserve fuel, save money, and reduce pollution.
• Scoop the poop! Bring a bag or newspaper to clean up after your pets       (it’s the law).  Flush the waste (not the      bag or newspaper) down the toilet or     place in the trashcan.
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! Reduce your consumption of single-use disposable plastics such as bags, water bottles, and straws.  Invest in re-usable containers.  Consider purchasing used items by visiting yard sales, thrift shops, craigslist.com, and ebay.com. Find out about local recycling programs and recycle properly. Buy reusable or recyclable products.
• Watercrafts should not be operated in shallow areas. Operate in deeper water where you are less likely to disturb      habitat.  Obey “fragile area” and “slow no wake” signs.  Refer to COA’s “Tips for Personal Watercraft.”
• Watch what you’re dune.  Dunes and grasses protect inland areas from wind and wave action and help preserve the shore. Dunes provide habitat for birds and animals.
• Critter encounter.  The shore is home to thousands of creatures.  Observe them from a distance.  If you see an animal entangled, injured, or in danger, contact a lifeguard, local health department, or wildlife rehabilitator.
• Don't go overboard.  Never discharge wastes overboard.  If you have an installed toilet in your boat, use the nearest pump out facility.  If you own a portable toilet, empty it at home or at a shore side dump station.