On Saturday, October 24th, close to
3,000 volunteers hit the beaches to participate in Clean Ocean
Action's 30th Annual Fall Beach Sweeps at over 65 sites from Essex County to
Cape May County. Volunteers removed and catalogued each piece of debris,
helping to document ongoing pollution issues. Robust crowds were reported up
and down the coast. Many volunteers came as teams from local businesses,
corporate and grassroots organizations, school and church groups, and families,
all with personal ties to the Shore and some with decades of Sweeps
participation.
Special thanks to the Beach Captains who helped make this event so
successful. Beach Captains, lead volunteers who direct the entire group of
participants at each Beach Sweeps location, are essential to the program’s
success. They are the heart and soul of Beach Sweeps. These dedicated
volunteers coordinate and manage all of the volunteers on the day of the event,
answer questions from the volunteers about ocean pollution and serve as COA
representatives.
On Sandy Hook alone, Beach Sweep volunteers
picked up: 5,846 plastic pieces, 5,324 food/candy wrappers, 4,785 caps/lids, 2,206
straws/stirrers, 1,879 cigarette filters, and 1,047 plastic beverage/soda
bottles.
The
next Beach Sweeps will be on Saturday, April 30th. In the meantime,
join us at the Debris Free Sea Conference on November 11, 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment