Expand Learning Beyond the Classroom

Twice a year middle school students from around New Jersey experience hands-on marine environmental education at the Jersey Shore. Central and Northern County students visit Gateway National Recreation Area in Sandy Hook in May and Southern County students visit Island Beach State Park in October. The Student Summit is a great way to expand learning beyond the classroom.

Students get to learn about different marine animals and ecosystems at their location. In the Spring students learn about one of NJ’s unique and ancient marine animals, the horseshoe crab. Students learn about the life history of this species that pre-dates the dinosaurs, the myths about this animal, its role in the ecosystem, the biomedical and economic importance to humans, and how we have impacted the species. Students will be shown the proper way to handle the horseshoe crab so they can get a closer look at this valuable species.

In the fall, the students learn about terrapins, turtles that inhabit estuaries along the east and Gulf coasts of the United States. Students learn about the life history of this species, interesting variations in their marking attributed to genetic diversity, its role in the ecosystem, and how we have impacted the species. Students will be shown the proper way to hold and handle the terrapins so they can get a closer look at this interesting species.

Other activities at the Student Summit include an interactive series of work stations with a variety of hands-on activities for students to learn about the environment. Students will learn about the water quality approach to aquatic resource assessment by collecting and analyzing water samples. New Jersey is within the Atlantic Flyway, providing a diverse viewing of coastal birds throughout the year. Students will join local birding experts in a survey and identification of coastal birds. Waves, wind, and currents shape New Jersey's barrier beaches. By making a beach profile, students will understand sand distribution, beach zones, and tidal water levels. New Jersey’s estuaries offer a variety of habitats as important breeding, feeding, and nursery grounds for a diversity of fish and invertebrate species. Students will use seine nets and sieves to collect fish and invertebrates to observe and identify common marine animals found in the local bays. Students will learn about the types, quantities, and sources of marine debris plaguing our coastal region and will participate in a cleanup.

These hands on activities allow students to get out of the classroom and into nature. In this day and age it is important to get children back outside exploring their own backyard. During our Student Summits participating students not only get to learn about different species and issues, but get to hold the animals, collect samples, and see firsthand threats facing our coast. The Summit left a lasting impression on past participants and we encourage more schools to apply!

The deadline for the Spring Summit is April 24th. Apply today! 

More information on the Student Summit can be found on our website under Education Programs www.cleanoceanaction.org

Thousands of Beach Sweeps Volunteers Clean NJ Beaches and Waterways

Clean Ocean Action’s Annual Fall Beach Sweeps – Saturday, October 19

Atlantic City Beach Sweeps Volunteers and the band The Barenaked Ladies

On Saturday, thousands of volunteers hit the beaches to participate in Clean Ocean Action's (COA) 28th Annual Fall Beach Sweeps at over 60 sites along the Jersey Shore. Volunteers collected, tallied, and removed harmful and unsightly debris from New Jersey’s coastline, one year after Superstorm Sandy.

  

This year, Beach Sweeps has been folded into Clean Ocean Action’s Wave of Action For The Shore program, a monthly volunteer initiative started in December 2012 to help the people, businesses, habitats and waterways of New York and New Jersey affected by Superstorm Sandy. 

“Clean Ocean Action is excited to continue to integrate Beach Sweeps into the Waves of Action program, a year-long initiative to recover and restore the NY/NJ coastline after the devastation of Sandy,” commented Catie Tobin, Clean Ocean Action Ocean Advocacy and Education Fellow.  “With more than 1,700 volunteers pre-registered for Fall Beach Sweeps, it is evident that taking care of our shores a year after Sandy continues to be a priority,” she added.

“As we approach the one year anniversary of Sandy, COA's volunteers continue to provide invaluable assistance to the recovery of the entire shore area, and Sea Bright in particular. We are very grateful for their support and look forward to continuing our longstanding, positive relationship,” stated Sea Bright Volunteer Coordinator Frank Lawrence.

The data collected Saturday will be combined with data collected at Spring Beach Sweeps in April, and then analyzed and presented in an annual report. These annual reports identify pollution problems, educate citizens on the types and quantities of debris, aid legislators in passing and enforcing laws to protect the marine environment, and contribute to local and international efforts to combat marine pollution.  The data from the Spring and Fall 2013 Beach Sweeps will be released next spring.  Beach Sweeps Reports from previous years are available at www.cleanoceanaction.org.

Key to the program’s success are the volunteer Beach Captains that lead each of the Beach Sweeps locations. These dedicated volunteers coordinate and manage all of the volunteers the day of the event, answer questions from the volunteers about ocean pollution and serve as Clean Ocean Action representatives.

High School Student Peter Donnelly and Friend

“We would like to thank all the people who care enough about our oceans and beaches to come out and help make Clean Ocean Action’s Fall Beach Sweeps such a success. Sandy may have set us back but thanks to the hard work of people from all over we are coming back. We would also like to thank Union Beach's Public Works. Through everything they have had to deal with this year they still have time to help with supplies, tables and picking up the stuff that gets picked up on the beach,” said High School Student and Union Beach Captain Peter and Union Beach Captain Fran Donnelly.

“Over the last 20 years as the Sea Bright Public Beach Captain, it has been amazing to meet so many different people who have the same love of the ocean. It has been especially wonderful to see all the children from local schools growing up. My son has now taken over from me as Beach Captain, so we are in good hands,” said Sea Bright Public Beach Captains Mark and Cash Woldseth.

"I get a lot of support from the local girl scouts and their families, thanks to Erin and Nadine Foreman. I am so very grateful for them!" exclaimed Island Beach State Park Beach Captain Leah Savia.

The Fall Beach Sweeps were made possible by support from generous sponsors.  The Statewide Sponsors for the 2013 Beach Sweeps are Aveda, Bank of America, Comcast, TD Bank, and ShopRite Wakefern.

“Aveda’s focus on environmental leadership and responsibility has led to years of collaboration with Clean Ocean Action to protect clean water.  Our vision of connecting beauty, environment, and well-being is showcased through partnerships with local organizations like Clean Ocean Action.  We look forward to continuing to defend life’s most precious natural resource – water,” stated Aveda Earth Fund Director Katie Galloway.

“Through Beach Sweeps, our teams of volunteers have assisted in cleaning-up trash and debris on New Jersey beaches, lakes, rivers and streams,” said Bob Doherty, New Jersey President, Bank of America.  “Clean Ocean Action offers people a chance to improve their environment and be part of a global effort to drive positive change.”

“Comcast has been a proud supporter of Beach Sweeps since 2008 and hundreds of our employees have volunteered for the event as part of our Comcast Cares Day efforts. Clean Ocean Action does an amazing job of educating and engaging the public while building awareness of what it takes to keep our shoreline beautiful and our marine life healthy.  We love the Jersey shore and everything Clean Ocean Action does to protect it,” remarked Comcast Director of Community Investment Kimberly Smith.

Red Bank Regional High School Environmental Club at Sandy Hook

“Wakefern Food Corp./ShopRite is pleased with our 13+ year partnership with Clean Ocean Action.  As an environmentally and community oriented business, ShopRite respects when an organization can bring about effective change by involving more and more community member volunteers each year,” explained Suzanne Forbes, Environmental Affairs Administrator, Corporate Communications, Wakefern Food Corporation.  “Historically, and recently due to the devastation brought on by Superstorm Sandy, the Beach Sweeps event brings about the improvement of an important ecological habitat, and the creation of a greener generation,” Forbes added.

County Sponsors include Atlantic City Electric, BD, Brook 35 & West, Montecalvo Material Recovery Facility, The Grove, and United Teletech Financial. Site Sponsors include Adventure Aquarium - Ocean City 59th Street Pavilion, Baine Contracting - Brick Beach I, Brookdale Community College – Ideal Beach, Enterprise Rent A Car - Sandy Hook, Kohl’s - Sandy Hook, New Jersey Natural Gas - Belmar 1st Avenue, Paul V. Fernicola & Associates - Loch Arbour/Allenhurst, Surfrider Foundation/Jersey Shore Chapter - Asbury Park North Beach, Surfrider Foundation/South Jersey Chapter - In Memory of Tommy Kraemer - Avalon.

Spring 2013 Beach Sweeps Highlights and Unusual Items Found:

• AmeriCorps volunteers at Asbury Park Convention Hall removed over 1,000 cigarette filters from the boardwalk.

• At the Atlantic City Beach Sweep location, the band Barenaked Ladies pitched in alongside a group of their fans, followed by a short acoustic performance by the band for the volunteers. This is one of several of their service projects with the environmental non-profit REVERB along their national tour.

• The combined 200 volunteers at Belmar 1^st Avenue and 16^th Avenue found a large amount of cigarette filters and small plastic pieces.

• 40 volunteers in Loch Arbour found a plastic bugle, bikini top and a rubber snake.

• Over 450 volunteers at Sandy Hook found a baby binky and a rat costume.

• At Toney’s Brook in Glen Ridge, volunteers found plastic hot dog, Costco card, shopping cart, metal window frame, very old wood and metal wheel, plastic furniture cover with zipper, various baseballs, Nerf balls and a Frisbee, many tiny liquor bottles and cigar wrappers.

• Over 50 volunteers in Union Beach, led by high school student Beach Captain Peter Donnelly, found a message in a bottle.

The Project that Rose from the Dead to Threaten the Shores

Massive LNG Tanker Port proposed off
Sandy Hook, NJ and Jones Beach, NY

Today, the Maritime Administration (MarAd), part of the US Department of Transportation, announced Liberty LNG’s Port Ambrose application, 13 miles off the coast of Sandy Hook, NJ and 17 miles southeast of Jones Beach, NY. Liberty LNG has applied in the past for an LNG port off the NY/NJ coastline – though in 2011 New Jersey Governor Christie vetoed the port saying that it was bad for the region’s economy, tourism, fisheries, environment, security and commerce. This is the exact same port application that Governor Christie vetoed, just reshuffled and resubmitted.

“It is a gross misconstruction of the federal Deepwater Port Act to say that a Governor cannot veto an LNG application after the public review process, as Governor Christie did in 2011, and reaffirmed in 2012,” concluded Andrew J. Provence, Litwin & Provence LLC. “Fortunately, we have a Governor who stands his ground.”

The Liberty LNG Port Ambrose project, if licensed, would allow both exports and imports of natural gas, resulting in accelerated hydro-fracking in the region and higher energy costs. The project boasts that it would create only 6-10 permanent jobs. MarAd, according to the notice (see attachment, note 1), has the authority to “license the construction of Deepwater Ports for the export [or import] of oil and natural gas from domestic sources within the United States to foreign markets abroad” under the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 – indeed, the Port Ambrose notice of application doesn’t even contain the word “import” (in the project description, or anywhere else).

“This is a bad science fiction movie,” said Cindy Zipf, Executive Director of Clean Ocean Action. “The Liberty Natural Gas tanker project was dead - Governor Christie vetoed this proposal in 2011. Liberty has crawled out of the grave to violate our ocean, citizens and shore economies at a time when New Jersey and New York are focused on restoring our shore from Super-storm Sandy. Liberty Natural Gas is trying
to take advantage of our weakened state to jam this project through—it’s hard to image a more deplorable corporate tactic. We may be down, but we will fight.”

"The South Shore Audubon Society is dismayed that the recently announced ‘notice of application’ makes Liberty's LNG proposal official. We must all work to defeat this threatened industrialization of our ocean!" noted Jim Brown, President, South Shore Audubon Society.

“We've seen a lot of really dumb ideas over the years, but this one takes the cake. Hurricane Sandy really walloped the New York coastline and having a facility like this off of our coastline exposes us to unimaginable damage, not just during hurricane season, but all year long,” said Ida Sanoff, Executive Director, Natural Resources Protective Association. “I can't recall when we've heard of a more dangerous, ill-advised proposal. The only people who will benefit from this project are the big money, big energy companies.”

“A deepwater port in the ocean off the coasts of New Jersey and New York is a threat to the ocean and marine life, to coastal economies, the environment and to the people living along coastal areas. Port Ambrose poses risks to the environment from chemical pollution, noise pollution, and dredging of the seafloor,” said Suzanne Golas, csjp, WATERSPIRIT Director. “From the perspective of faith communities like WATERSPIRIT, such risks to water and all life are not justified in order to bring profits to Liberty Natural Gas from their exporting of liquid natural gas to the highest bidder in European and Asian markets. Policy preserving and conserving waste and policy replacing fossil fuels with sustainable energy should be our priorities.”

“Expanded exportation of natural gas will be bad for domestic consumers, bad for our climate and bad for public health here at home,” said Jim Walsh, Eastern Regional Director, Food and Water Watch. “Gas exportation relies on fracking, which poses dreadful health and safety risks to all those connected to it. Governors Cuomo and Christie, if they are truly serious about climate change and public health, will fight the oil and gas industry and its latest profit-driven escapade on our shore.”

“The last thing our still suffering Sandy damaged NJ Shore needs is an LNG export facility. We know the process of fracking to extract the gas destined for export risks our drinking water, air, and ocean as it is not even regulated,” said ocean advocate and paddler Margo Pellegrino. “With this proposed terminal we increase this risk to our own drinking water and ocean, our own health, and pay more for our own ‘home grown’ energy as prices skyrocket with European demand for our dirty fuel. To say the idea of such a facility anywhere on the East Coast, but especially here in this most trafficked of all waterways is a ‘bad idea’ is an extreme understatement.”

“This proposal will not only harm the critical marine habitat of this coastal area and create a significant safety and terrorist threat to the adjacent communities but will also create a surge in the cost of natural gas for those in the NY area due to the export potential that this facility will ultimately accommodate,” said Dan Mundy, President, Jamaica Bay ECOWATCHERS.

“Port Ambrose LNG Import Terminal proposal is likely to be transposed into an Export Terminal so industry can gain higher gas prices for their gas abroad” asked Mary Anne Sullivan, Environmental Researcher. “This would increase the demand for our country's natural gas and water supply and would result in the environmental impacts from industrialization of the entire Marcellus Shale region. Isn't it time for our country to invest in green energy, energy that does not cause climate change?”

“Gov. Christie’s veto was premised on the need to protect our commercial and recreational waterways and beaches, the fact that we have sufficient natural gas resources for the next 50 years without the need to compromise our environment and local natural gas production and the very real terrorist threat LNG promotes.  His logic is sound, not just for New Jersey or the LI Sound, but for Long Island’s south shore as well,” said Legislator Dave Denenberg  (D-Merrick).

Hundreds of Students Learn about the Ecological Effects of Superstorm Sandy

Sandy Hook Beaches, Trails, and Marshes Become Outdoor Classrooms at Clean Ocean Action’s Student Summit

Group on Tuesday, May 21

Students learning about horseshoe crabs on May 22

Over 600 middle school students and teachers, from 20 schools in Northern and Central New Jersey joined scientists and volunteer teachers for a day of learning on the beach at Clean Ocean Action’s two-day Annual Spring Student Summit held on May 21 and May 22. Students experienced hands-on marine environmental education by participating in six learning table activities and twelve interactive field trips. The beaches, trails, and marshes of Sandy Hook served as the outdoor classroom for the seaside symposium. This year, the round-table activities and interactive field trips are tied to the ecological effects of Superstorm Sandy.

Students participated in six hands-on learning table activities, which included live horseshoe crabs, identifying seashells, studying invertebrates, observing a model of nonpoint source pollution, and learning the effects of litter in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy on the marine environment. Students also participated in an activity showcasing the importance of dunes. Students from the Marine Academy of Science and Technology, a Monmouth County vocational high school located on Sandy Hook, served as peer teachers at the activity workstations.

In addition, naturalists and other education professionals led students in twelve field activities throughout the park. Students used seine nets to collect and identify common marine species of Sandy Hook Bay and learned about key bird species and the important role of Sandy Hook in bird migration. Students also participated in a beach cleanup, tested water quality, learned fishing & surfing techniques, traversed trails with park naturalists, and learned about beach profiling.


The 2013 Spring Student Summit was made possible by donations from private foundations, businesses, and citizens, including Provident Bank Foundation.

The following schools participated in the Spring Student Summit: 

May 21 Participating Schools: Timothy Christian (Piscataway), Asbury Park Middle (Asbury Park), Carl Sandburg Middle (Old Bridge), Colin Powell Elementary (Union City), Lincoln Elementary (Caldwell), Long Branch Middle (Long Branch), Memorial (S. Hackensack), Our Lady of the Lake (Verona), Sacred Heart School (Morris), Saint Jerome (W. Long Branch), South Orange Middle (S. Orange), St. Joseph Regional (Newton).

May 22 Participating Schools: Academy Middle (Jersey City), Joao Antao (Elizabeth), Long Branch Middle (Long Branch), Memorial (Washington), Newark Christian (Newark), Passaic Art and Science Charter (Passaic), St. Andrew the Apostle (Clifton), The OLC School (Jersey City)

About COA’s Student Summits:

For 25 years, Clean Ocean Action’s Summits have reached over 15,000 students in New Jersey, expanding learning beyond the classroom. The Summit program presents students with an interdisciplinary marine and environmental education experience that complements the NJ Science Standards.

COA invites northern and central New Jersey public and private schools to the Spring Student Summit, which is held in mid-May at Sandy Hook. The Fall Student Summit takes place in early October, at Island Beach State Park for southern public and private schools. Schools are mailed applications prior to the Summits and are accepted based on the application and availability. 

For information on additional COA educational programs or events, visit www.CleanOceanAction.org or call COA’s Main Office at (732) 872-0111.

To Help the Jersey Shore’s Comeback, Clean Ocean Action Launches 2013 Year of “Waves of Action” For The Shore

To Help the Jersey Shore’s Comeback, Clean Ocean Action Launches 2013 Year of “Waves of Action” For The Shore 

Year-Long Volunteer Recovery Action Plan Released Today 

Clean Ocean Action (COA) held a teleconference today to announce the 2013 “Waves of Action” program, which will respond to the impacts of Superstorm Sandy and help improve and protect the marine environment.  COA is engaging its network of organizations, businesses, citizens, and municipalities to help coastal communities throughout New Jersey and New York in need over the long term with volunteer action.   

Learn More at www.ForTheShore.org!

“Recovery will be a very long and challenging road,” said Cindy Zipf, Executive Director of Clean Ocean Action.  “It is essential to rebuild better with environmental stewardship and resiliency and provide resources and support to keep the momentum going,” Zipf added. 

Future Waves of Action days in 2013 will progress with the needs of communities and will keep the momentum going for continued improvement of the shore through debris clean ups, sustainable development plans, and projects to improve water quality.  

“Even though it has been over two months since the Hurricane, there are still very real needs in many communities, and we will work to meet those needs for as long as it takes,” said Zach McCue, Clean Ocean Action Citizen Action Coordinator. 


“Rebuilding Sea Bright will take a sustained effort for a couple of years. Partnering with Clean Ocean Action for regular volunteer days provides additional resources that will be very important to the long term recovery of the town,” added Frank Lawrence, Sea Bright Volunteer Coordinator, who participated in the teleconference on Thursday. 

Waves of Action For The Shore: Month-to-Month
January 19 – Clean-Up, Clean-Out 
February 23– Helping Hands at Home 
March 23 – Bringing Back our Ecosystems 
April 27 – 28th Annual Beach Sweeps
May 18 - Back to the Beach  
June 22, July 20, August 17 - Healthy Habitats, Water Conservation and Energy Efficiency 
September 21 – Education for the Future and Long-Term Recovery 
October 19 – Fall Beach Sweeps
November 13-15 – Education for the Future 
December 7 – Waves of Action Conference and Awards 

The Wave of Action on Saturday, January 19, is in unison with Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, which has become a national weekend centered on service.   

“Many of our projects from December are registered again in January, since Waves of Action is the only clean-up effort that some parks and beaches have been able to have since Sandy.  That said, there are also many new locations where people can help,” said Tavia Danch, Clean Ocean Action Education Coordinator.   

A number of organizations and municipalities have been involved in not only the planning of, but are also participating in, Clean Ocean Action’s Wave of Action on January 19.  These groups include: President’s Inaugural Committee, National Park Service, Bayshore Waterfront Park Affiliation, Monmouth County Park System, HOPE worldwide, Borough of Sea Bright, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Wall High School Environmental Club, AmeriCorps Watershed Ambassadors, Red Bank Friends of Maple Cove, United Methodist Committee of Relief, Alliance for a Living Ocean, Beach Haven West Community Association, Surfrider Foundation, South Jersey Chapter, Borough of Ocean Gate and Natural Resource Protective Association. 

Over 1,200 people have already signed up to help to clean out homes, neighborhoods, parks, beaches, and waterways at 27 locations throughout New York and New Jersey, including Atlantic City, Long Beach Island, Sea Bright, Asbury Park, Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and Staten Island and Jones Beach, New York.
   
“Before Hurricane Sandy, many of the people interested in cleaning up New Jersey's beaches were environmentalists,” noted Lindsey Van Zile, Toms River South High School Senior and Waves of Action Project Leader.  “Now, with the help of Waves of Action program, we can all come together and create solutions to major environmental problems and even help those in need,” she added.  


For more information about the Waves of Action program, visit www.fortheshore.org or contact Clean Ocean Action at (732) 872-0111.

Hurricane Sandy: A Warning Against Future Offshore Industrialization

Hurricane Sandy is advancing north toward the Mid-Atlantic.  

Although the projected paths vary on where the storm will hit land, it is clear that if we allow offshore energy projects like LNG terminals and Offshore Oil Drilling the ocean would be MORE at risk and the potential impacts (economic and environmental) to our coastal areas would greatly increase.

Oil and gas exploration plans are underway from mid-Florida to the southern tip of New Jersey with deafening seismic sonar surveys expected to begin next year - blasting deafening sound waves across the seafloor (killing, harming, and dispersing all forms of marine life (to varying degrees)).  There are active proponents in Virginia who want to see oil rigs off their coast ASAP. 

Similarly, Liquefied Natural Gas Terminals have been proposed off the New Jersey and New York coasts.  These facilities would be the docking sites of giant tanker ships carrying vast quantities of concentrated energy.

Across the Gulf of Mexico region, hurricanes have damaged and destroyed rigs and pipeline ports - resulting in oil spills and debris that have destroyed coastal ecosystems (anyone remember the BP Deepwater Horizon?!?).  Billion dollar coastal economies of the Atlantic Coast that depend on clean oceans would be jeopardized.  

YOU get help protect our coasts and industry-free oceans by supporting the Clean Ocean Zone and COA as we continue to fight these offshore energy threats to our oceans!

Help us keep these industries out of the ocean so that the next time we're facing yet another major storm, we're not also living with the fear of an offshore energy disaster!

Main Thunder Horse production platform listing after being struck by Hurricane Dennis in 2005 (source: www.wastedenergy.net)

More on Hurricane Sandy

NOAA Hurricane Center, The Weather Channel, and WeatherUnderground.com  

Please take care and prepare for the storm.

Useful links on the looming offshore energy threat:

• More on LNG Terminals
• BOEM Offshore Oil and Gas Energy
• BOEM South and MidAtlantic Exploration EIS
• Bi-Partisian Support for a Clean Ocean 
• Elected Officials Speak Out Against Drilling
• Seismic Surveys Threaten Marine Life

      

Lights, Camera, Clean Ocean Action!

Beach Sweeps Video Online Release! 

 (Sandy Hook, NJ) – Clean Ocean Action (COA) is proud to announce the online release of a video showcasing the Beach Sweeps program.  In 1985, COA launched the region’s first Beach Sweeps program to rid beaches of unsightly and harmful debris.  Today, the Beach Sweeps is one of the longest running cleanups of its kind in the world.  The program has grown from 75 people at one site in 1985 to 7,575 volunteers at nearly 70 sites in 2011. Since 1985, over 90,000 volunteers have participated and removed over 4.5 million pieces of debris from New Jersey's beaches and waterways.

Sandy Levine, producer of the video, is an award-winning television producer who was born and raised at the Jersey Shore. 

“I've known about and respected Clean Ocean Action since the group began in the mid-1980s. I heard that the Beach Sweeps were coming up and I felt compelled to be there to shoot this video. The idea that thousands of people willingly volunteer to pick up garbage was inspiring and I wanted to capture that passion and commitment,” explained Levine.  “When I arrived at Sandy Hook, it was depressing; the sand was littered with all kinds of garbage. A few hours later - the beach was pristine. The Beach Sweeps not only get rid of ugly garbage - they remind us that our ocean and shore need protection. I'm honored to be part of the effort to get out the word that we all can - and must - do something to help," she continued.

Clean Ocean Action was delighted Sandy Levine was able to produce the video.  It provides an important opportunity for everyone with access to the internet to learn about Sweeps and become inspired to participate.

“Over the past 27 years, volunteers have worked hard to collect, catalogue, and remove nearly 5 million pieces of trash from New Jersey’s beaches and waterways,” stated Tavia Danch, COA’s Education Coordinator.  “This video will highlight the great work of our volunteers and inspire others to follow in their footsteps,” added Danch.

Please visit Clean Ocean Action’s website www.cleanoceanaction.org, where the video is posted on our homepage.  It is also uploaded on Clean Ocean Action’s YouTube channel at: http://youtu.be/Z3v7ypuCZjQ.

Clean Ocean Action’s 27^th Annual Fall Beach Sweep will be held this Saturday, October 20 from 9-12:30 PM at over 60 cleanup sites along the NJ shore and waterways from Middlesex to Cape May County.  For more information, or to register groups of ten or more, please visit www.cleanoceanaction.org.

BRWC Examines Health of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay

The Bayshore Regional Watershed Council (BRWC) is an all-volunteer environmental group. Since 2000, the council has been working to improve the physical environment in the Bayshore region of Middlesex and Monmouth counties, New Jersey. The BRWC is made up of citizens, scientists, environmental commissioners, and municipal officials from a variety of Bayshore communities, from Old Bridge Township eastward to the Borough of Highlands. The council's goal is the restoration and conservation of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay. This goal can only be accomplished, however, through active public participation by people in each Bayshore community.

Please consider becoming a member of the watershed council. BRWC meet the second Thursday of every month inside Keyport Borough Hall, located on Front Street. For more information, visit www.bayshorewatershed.org. 

Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

On September 16, 2012, BRWC hosted a Free Seining Event of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay.  One way to discover how healthy a natural body of water might be is to conduct a biological test, like seining.  Two people pull a long net through the shallow part of the water to capture fish, crabs, and anything else that lives along the shallow edge of the bay, mostly small and juvenile animals. After recording and taking a close look at what was found, participants then release the animals back into the water.

Seining is like a taking a brief health check to see the abundance and diversity of who's swimming in the water. In general, the more variety of life in the water, the healthy it is.  Four bayside beaches were tested: Cliffwood Beach in Aberdeen Township, Conaskonck Point in Union Beach, near the mouth of Pews Creek in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Township, and near the mouth of Many Mind Creek in Atlantic Highlands.

Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

The goal was to see if water quality in Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay, a gritty urban-suburban estuary downstream from New York City, was healthy during a late summer day. 

Among the catch was:

• Herring, including bluebacks and shad
• 4" Snapper Blues
• Atlantic Silversides 
• Striped Killifish by the handful
• Northern Pipefish
• Several species of drums
• Lots of comb jellies, mole crabs, and mud snails
• Skillet fish
• Juvenile Blennies

There was also an assortment of crabs and shrimps:

• Blue crabs
• Lady crabs
• Spider crabs
• Mud crabs
• Mole crabs
• Snapping shrimp 
• Shore shrimp

Pipefish found in Atlantic Highlands. Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

In spite of the diversity, though, the turbidity was poor. The water was cloudy and turbid, so much so that in some places you could only see a few inches down. Perhaps this was due to recent rains that had washed in an abundance of sand, sediment, and other substances. There could have also been an abundance of algae floating in the water.  

To find out the full results of the seining survey, check out "Nature on the Edge of NYC:"  here.

Fall Beach Sweeps October 20!

In 1985, COA launched the region’s first Beach Sweeps program to rid beaches of unsightly and harmful debris.  COA's Beach Sweeps is one of the longest running cleanups of its kind in the world.  The program has grown from 75 people at one site in 1985, to 7,575 volunteers at nearly 70 sites in 2011.  Volunteers gather from Raritan to Delaware Bays and along the ocean to clean beaches and waterways, as well as underwater sites.  They join as groups (community, school, business, and organization), families, or individuals.  Participants collect and record valuable data about debris, which is presented in annual reports and used to advance federal, state, and local programs to reduce litter.

The 2012 Fall Beach Sweeps will take place on Saturday, October 20.

Follow these links for more information:
About the Beach Sweeps
Annual Beach Sweeps Data Reports
Beach Sweeps Crowdrise

Here are write ups from Beach Sweeps-goers who participated at our Keyport site: 


"Without a doubt, one of the most satisfying activities I’ve been engaged in since moving to Keyport, is the Clean Ocean Action Beach Sweeps.  Twice a year, volunteers organized by the Keyport Environmental Commission under Beach Captains Mike Palmisano and Barbara Granda, spend three hours scouring various areas of our beaches for trash, categorizing the trash on forms which are later tallied and submitted to Clean Ocean Action for use in research, and bagging and removing the trash from the beach.  I was aware of this activity before I knew who was actually doing it, as I live right across the street from the beach on Myrtle Avenue.  I used to bring a bag and pick up trash too, but was not aware that the other part of the job was to fill out the forms which assign the trash to various categories for research purposes.  When I joined the Environmental Commission, I became aware of the charter and activities of Beach Sweeps.  Now I do it right!

I am amazed at the difference I see in the quality of the beach near my house since we moved to Keyport.  There are a few of us in the neighborhood who pick up trash there on a regular basis.  Starting with a beautiful clean beach after Beach Sweeps, we try to keep it that way as long as possible!  We all agree that it seems like less trash is being dumped there than before we started picking it up on a regular basis.  We wonder if it might be possible that the reason for this is that the people who go there are somewhat inspired by the fact that the beach looks cleaner, to take better care of it.  We like that idea!

In the past couple of years, perhaps because there is a little less trash for the Beach Sweeps volunteers to deal with, they have made a lot of progress in ridding our beaches of some of the bulkier items – notably tires of all sizes,  some of which have been there for a long, long time.  Tires are particularly unattractive and unhealthy trash items, and it is a real pleasure to see them only rarely on the beach now.

Feeling like it is possible to make a difference is priceless, but the other invaluable aspect of Beach Sweeps is the camaraderie among neighbors and volunteers that we see on these days.   Last year the Greater Newark Conservancy organization brought a group of teens from Newark who did an awesome job, appeared to have a ball, and ate the refreshments provided by the commission with real enthusiasm!  Altogether, Beach Sweeps is an activity that I wouldn’t miss, one that makes me feel like a useful part of my neighborhood and my town."


-Maureen Kinkela, Keyport Environmental Commission Member


"I am a member of the Keyport Environmental Commission. For as many years as I can remember, the Commission has run the COA Beach Sweeps. As one of our main activities, we garner support from the local merchants’ group, as well as the local governing officials, towns’ people, and others from outside the town.  The Beach Sweeps truly is a community event.  At several Sweeps, we’ve had student groups from various outside communities including Old Bridge and Newark. Often, we will have 40 or more volunteers on a Sweeps day.  Volunteers are matched up and work in teams. At times, a volunteer will find they are matched with the mayor, a council member or a candidate for office, who also is volunteering. Working together for a common goal is a very satisfying way to build community spirit.

While most people come ready to clean the beach, we clearly stress the importance of their documented findings.  We try especially hard to ensure that our volunteers understand the purpose and design of the data sheets they are about to fill out and emphasize the importance of accurately documenting what they find on the beach. After the volunteers leave and all the trash bags are picked up, the one thing that remains is the data record they created.  After reading Flotsametrics, I became acutely aware of the role garbage plays in our waterways.

Keyport beaches, unlike Sandy Hook Gateway National Park, are located in residential and commercial neighborhoods. This difference can impact the debris we find.  When I look over various items picked up on these beaches, a question that always comes to my mind is - did it float in from somewhere else along the bay or did it come from the land side?  If the answer is from the land side, which I suspect it often is, we may be not only the source of our own littered beaches, but also very possibly the source of floatables for beaches in other communities. As such, we have an opportunity as a community to address our potential impact on the Bayshore region by re-emphasizing good garbage practices.

Personally, my experience with Sweeps has taught me when I find a piece of litter in the street, even though I didn’t have any part in putting there, I become responsible for seeing it is properly disposed of.  If more of us took that approach, I believe we would certainly have cleaner beaches and cleaner communities.  We all need to be more aware of our responsibility to properly dispose of our own waste."


- Michael Palmisano, Beach Sweeps Keyport Beach Captain  and Keyport Environmental Commission Member

[PRESS RELEASE] OCEAN CHAMPIONS TO DIVE INTO “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” CAMPAIGN ONE WEEK FROM TODAY

PRESS RELEASE

***For Immediate Release***

Contact: Lindsay McNamara, Clean Ocean Action
732-872-0111 (office) 908-310-6729 (cell)

OCEAN CHAMPIONS TO DIVE INTO “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” 
CAMPAIGN ONE WEEK FROM TODAY

 Paddle, Bike, and Rally from 

Cape May, NJ to Montauk, NY for a Clean Ocean

Beach-lovers urged to “Get in Motion for the Ocean” to raise awareness of 

ocean pollution threats and to support for a Clean Ocean Zone

Sandy Hook, NJ –– One week from today, on Friday August 10, Clean Ocean Action and other marine advocacy groups will begin a two week adventure along the coast of Cape May, New Jersey, to Montauk, New York, to raise awareness of ocean pollution issues and the need for a Clean Ocean Zone.


Facing threats from ocean blasting for oil and gas development, pollution, and reckless development, the Clean Ocean Zone initiative was created by concerned citizens along the New York and New Jersey coastlines to lock-out harmful pollution and industrial activities off the coast while locking-in permanent protection for future generations. The ultimate goal is for the citizen-drafted federal law to be enacted.


The Tour for the Shore will kick off in one week, next Friday in Cape May, making its way up the coast, through New York City, and along the South Shore of Long Island. The Tour will conclude in Montauk, NY on Friday, August 24th, 2012. To finish strong, there will be a 100-mile “Century Ride” from Babylon, NY to Montauk kicking off at the break of dawn at 6 A.M. on the 24 – bringing Dixon and other cyclists to Montauk at the same time as Pellegrino and other paddlers-at-sea.


The Tour for the Shore includes special events like; a bike cruiser ride through Fire Island, a town meeting-style environmental summit on the state of the Monmouth County Bayshore and to meet up with other advocates at “Blue Drinks” events.  Beach-goers can discuss the Clean Ocean Zone, ocean conservation, marine policy and renewable energy with ocean champions from New Jersey and New York at local restaurants along the Tour.


For details about the dates, and locations of the Tour visit www.cleanoceanzone.org or call Clean Ocean Action at 732-872-0111. 

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Tour for the Shore: What's New!

COA's Tour for the Shore, an unprecedented 230-mile, 15 day public awareness citizen action campaign,  is kicking off in less than two weeks!  We have been working hard in the COA office to prepare for our adventure to save the ocean.  Here's what's new with the Tour for the Shore:

• Like the picture above?  Want a yard sign for your house or outside your business?  Please contact COA at (732) 872-0111.

• Check out our Special Events during the Tour for the Shore; including an environmental summit, beach artist expo, and more!

• Have you heard about for the Century Ride for the Ocean in Montauk State Park yet? 99 committed ocean cyclists + 1 goal: a clean ocean = 100 mile ride for the ocean.

• Join us throughout the Tour for Blue Drinks Meetups. Discuss the Clean Ocean Zone, ocean conservation, marine policy and renewable energy with ocean champions from New Jersey and New York over a cold one!

• Are you looking for family fun during the Tour?  Or are you more of an ocean adventurer or coastal champion?  Click here to find the right level of Tour participation for you. 

Vote for COA in UTF's Million Dollar Community Challenge!

Great news! Clean Ocean Action has been invited to participate in the United Teletech Financial Million Dollar Community Challenge again. This is a great opportunity for us to earn a donation from United Teletech Financial, but we’ll need your help to get the biggest donation possible!

What is the Million Dollar Challenge?

• The goal is to save people in our communities $1 million in loan interest between July and September.
• Total interest they saved by refinancing credit card debt at a lower rate or reducing the term of a mortgage will contribute toward the $1 million goal.
• Percentage of each loan’s total interest savings will be donated to local participating charities. You decide which charity gets your donation.
• When the $1 million goal is met, United Teletech Financial will be cutting a check to each participating charity’s accumulated donations.

2 ways to help us get the biggest donation possible:

• Go online to www.jerseysaves.org and vote for Clean Ocean Action in the People’s Choice section. 
• OR
• Take out a qualifying loan through United Teletech Financial. Upon closing, chose Clean Ocean Action to receive your donation.

COA accepting our check from last year's Challenge

For more details on the Challenge and to
vote for Clean Ocean Action for the People’s Choice award, click here!

Your Summer Ocean Reading List!

Here at Clean Ocean Action, we do more than just work to keep the ocean clean; we swim in the surf, surf the waves, and wave at all of the tourists out to enjoy the ocean over the summer with a good book.

Speaking of good books, we'd like to share with you some of our favorite books about the ocean for you to have on your summer reading list.  As you head to the library (or browse your eBook store), add these ocean and beach books to your list:

• The Ocean of Life: The Fate of Man and the Sea, by Callum Roberts
• The Ocean Almanac (from 1984!), by Robert Hendrickson
• Rescue Warriors: The U.S. Coast Guard, by David Helvarg
• Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle, by Claire Nivola
• The World Is Blue: How Our Fate and the Ocean's Are One, by Sylvia Earle and Bill McKibben
• The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell, by Mark Kurlansky
• Moby-Duck: The True Story of 28,800 Bath Toys Lost at Sea, by Donovan Hohn
• Moby Dick, by Herman Melville
• Morning Glass, by Mike Doyle
• Ultrasimple Boat Building: 17 Plywood Boats Anyone Can Build, by Gavin Atkin
• The View from Lazy Point: A Natural Year in an Unnatural World, by Carl Safina
• Fire Ice, by Clive Cussler
• A Sea In Flames, by Carl Safina
• Red Sky at Morning, by Gus Speth
• A Gift from the Sea, by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
• Water Follies, by Robert Glennon

Enjoy!!

Student Summit Photos!