Tag: coastsweep

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Cleanup! Cleanup! Everybody Cleanup!


ICC, Worcester, Massachusetts, 2007

If you’ve read my first book, TRACKING TRASH, you know that I’m a fan of the ocean cleanup extravaganza known as the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). One day, hundreds of thousands of volunteers, millions of pounds of trash lifted from shores and deposited in safer places AND a twenty-five year record of every single item collected*. What’s not to love? Having participated in a few events myself, I know first-hand the impact they have on local beaches and the people who love them.

This year, The Ocean Conservancy is encouraging event organizers to take their work to the next level: clean up beaches, record the trash you find … and at the same time do everything you can to be sure you make as little impact on the planet as possible. No more Boxes of Joe on the sidelines, folks; bring your own coffee in a re-useable mug. I love it.

Participating in a planned ICC event is an excellent way to empower students who are aware of the ocean pollution issue. (TRACKING TRASH readers, for example.) Yes, there is a lot of trash in the ocean, but we can do something about it. We can clean it up, we can look carefully at what we find, and we can change our habits. You can participate alone, with your family, with a classroom of students or as part of a scout group. The options are endless, and the impact is real.

This year’s ICC is September 17, and you can find more information and an event near you at The Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup page.

For more information on ICC events happening in Massachusetts, where the festivities are spread out over a two month timeframe, visit the 2011 Coastsweep page.

* For 26 years, volunteers have counted all the debris collected on beaches around the world during ICC. Their results are compiled and published annually in The Ocean Conservancy’s State of the Ocean report. You can access the 2010 report from the ICC webpage linked above.

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Lincoln School

Last year I offered a free school visit raffle for participants in International Coastal Cleanup events in Massachusetts. There were 2900 entrants (hooray for the Bay State and its dedicated ocean lovers!) and the grand prize winner was Emily, a seventh grader from Brookline. Yesterday I visited her school.

As it turns out, I have been to the William Lincoln School once before. But if ever there was a school that I wanted to visit again, this was it. First of all, last year’s trip was a bit unsettling for me. Somehow I managed to leave my computer bag (with my laptop inside!) sitting on the floor of my garage when I left for the visit. Once I recovered from the shock and embarrassment of this oversight, I did my presentations sans slideshow. All went well, and the Lincoln students and staff were amazingly kind about my gaffe. Even still, I was more than thrilled to go back this year and show them my best.

A highlight of this year’s visit was the opportunity to speak with Mrs. Zobel’s eight grade science students, who have spent a good deal of this year exploring ecosystems and sharing them in book format with younger students. What a treat to talk about the process of writing nonfiction for young people with writers in the thick of that very process! I look forward to reading some of these books when they are finished.

Many thanks to Emily, COASTSWEEPer extraordinaire, and Sue Zobel, who coordinated my visit. In honor of Emily and Sue and the entire Lincoln community, I’m going to officially kick off the International Coastsweet Get-The-Word-Out season:

This year’s International Coastal Cleanup will be held worldwide on September 19, 2009; you can find an event near you at the ICC website. Massachusetts residents can visit the COASTSWEEP website, where 2009 ICC events in the Bay State will soon be listed.

 

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2008 ICC Results Are In

“Marine debris doesn’t fall from the sky, it falls from human hands—and human hands have the power to stop it.”

This week The Ocean Conservancy published the results of the 2008 International Coastal Cleanup. A RISING TIDE OF OCEAN DEBRIS AND WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT IT details the hard work of the more than 380,000 volunteers from 104 countries who cleaned beaches and counted trash last fall. It’s sobering stuff: more than 11 million cigarette butts, plastic bags, food wrappers, plastic bottles, balloons, tangled fishing lines, etc were plucked from beaches around the world.

You can read more highlights and download the full report here. (TRACKING TRASH readers may recognize the seal on the cover of the new ICC report; it’s the same seal featured on the cover of my book. Photographers Yva Momatiuk and John Eastcott captured these images of a fur seal entangled in abandoned fishing net on South Georgia Island … and they continue to place them where they will inspire ocean conservation.)

This year’s International Coastal Cleanup will be held on September 19, 2009; mark your calendars now … and sign up here.

 

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Coastsweep Recap


© Gerry Burns

That’s a photo of the gaggle of ten-year-olds that came with me to the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) on Saturday. The boys chose to clean the rocks under the breakwall and I am happy to report that none of them got stuck … though there were a few close calls. In our two hours of cleaning we collected bottles, cans, bits of fishing line, pieces of styrofoam, food wrappers, toys, and a whole lot of bottle caps. Trumping all of these things, however, were the 237 cigarette butts we cleaned up. Gross.

Our scariest find was a knife. It was old and rusty and looked as if it should be shipped directly to the nearest CSI unit for closer study. Event organizers took photos of it and will be entering it in the ICC Weirdest Find contest, which made our boys very happy. (They are still talking about this find and wondering if their prize, should they win the contest, might be the knife itself. Boys!)

ICC events will continue in Massachusetts until the end of October; you can find more details here.

 

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Are You Ready to Track Trash?

I don’t know where Leo will be cleaning beaches this Saturday, but I’ll be at Salisbury Beach State Reservation. And I’ll be sporting this cool T-shirt:


© Benjamin Griffin Burns

In case you can’t read it, the fine print says:

Since 1987, COASTSWEEP volunteers have been helping to clean the beaches in Massachusetts. Barcaloungers, rubber boots, pieces of fishing net, truck tires, industrial tubing, milk crates, vinyl siding, garden hoses, food wrappers, rusty bottle tops, garbage bags, plastic grocery bags, sandwich bags, soft drink bottles, water bottles, beer bottles, beer cans, soda cans, ice tea cans, odd bits of rope (that were probably not odd to the person using them at one time), straws, tampon applicators, syrofoam cups, nurdles (a real word!), plastic knives, forks, spoons, and sporks, syringes, toilet bowls, unidentifiable bits of rubber, plastic coffee stirrers, and ciragette butts—are some of the things the collect. In past years, more than 80% of the debris collected came from land-based sources—where litter blown and washed from the streets, parking lots, and ball fields ends up in the water. In addition to the litter that’s just plain ugly to look at, every year, these bits of marine debris and stray trash kill thousands of marine animals that swallow or become entangled in them. And that’s why I’m a COASTSWEEP volunteer.

Festivities begin at 10am. Do join us if you can. If you need tips on getting involved in coastal cleanups at other locales, check out this earlier post.

 

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International Coastal Cleanup

On September 20, volunteers around the world will take to beaches in a massive effort to clean up our oceans and shorelines. I’ll be one of them.

International Coastal Cleanup is a project of The Ocean Conservancy. Each September, volunteers clear their local beaches of whatever garbage has washed ashore or been left behind. The genius of ICC events is in the data cards: volunteers don’t just pick up the trash, they record it. That’s right, each and every ketchup packet, paper napkin, and plastic bottle is actually counted. At the end of the cleanup, data cards are submitted to The Ocean Conservancy, whose staff tabulates the data and compiles it into an annual report. The information in ICC reports can then be used to help draft legislation–like the 2006 Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act–aimed at protecting our world oceans.


Revere Beach, 2005 © Loree Griffin Burns

Here are some tidbits from the 2007 ICC Report (which you can access here):

378,000 men, women and children in 76 countries took part;

six million pounds of trash were collected;

33,000 miles of shoreline were cleaned;

Getting involved is easy …

If you live outside of Massachusetts, visit The Ocean Conservancy’s ICC website to find a cleanup near you.

If you live in Massachusetts, consider attending the statewide kickoff event at Salisbury Beach State Reservation at 10am on Saturday, September 20. I’ll be there with gloves, trash bag, and data card in hand. You can find other Massachusetts events at the COASTSWEEP website.

One more thing …

Thanks to the generosity of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and the efforts of COASTSWEEP officials, each and every Massachusetts cleanup coordinator (there are more than seventy) will be receiving a signed copy of TRACKING TRASH in thanks for their efforts on behalf of our oceans. There is also a statewide raffle going on, with prizes that include a school visit from yours truly and several more signed copies of the book. (Find raffle information here.)

I am so proud to be part of this incredible effort; here’s to trash trackers everywhere!

 

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International Coastal Cleanup 2008


© 2005 Loree Griffin Burns

On September 20, 2008, beach guardians and environmentally motivated men, women, and children around the world will gather to pick up trash on their favorite shore. In the spirit of citizen science and ocean advocacy, they will also count each and every item of trash they find. That’s right, each ketchup packet, bottle cap, plastic fork, paper napkin, and cigarette butt will be recorded, and the tallied results will be published in a massive marine debris report.

Last year, 378,000 people from more than seventy countries participated in the International Coastal Cleanup … and they cleared more than six million pounds of trash from their local beaches. In Massachusetts, 1,998 people participated in ICC/COASTSWEEP and collected 18,957 pounds of trash. And right here in my own community, 92 of my friends and neighbors gathered to clear Indian Lake of 656 pounds of debris.

Astounding, yes? So much trash. And so many motivated humans doing something about it.

If you are inspired to get involved, visit the International Coastal Cleanup website, where you will find everything you need to know.

If you’d like a little motivation, the complete 2007 ICC report can be read online here.

Massachusetts residents can check out our local Coastsweep website for information on local ICC cleanup events, and Massachusetts students in grades 4-12 can also participate in a statewide poster contest.

More soon, but in the meanwhile do spread the word!

 

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What a small group of people can do …

Photo © 2007 Betty Jenewin

They can collect:

43 bags of trash
221 plastic bags
213 plastic bottles
715 glass bottles and glass pieces
294 food wrappers
6 tires
1 cigarette lighter
and six hundred pounds more trash.

This final COASTSWEEP post is dedicated to the ninety-two kids and adults who helped me clean Indian Lake, and especially to the mom who sent this testimonial:

“I was there with 4 Junior Girl Scouts who chose the COASTSWEEP event at their 6-hour service project. They were among the last to leave the lake. One girl noted, “When we first started I didn’t notice that much trash, but now my awareness has grown.” Another girl said, “It’s amazing what a small group of girls can do.” YES! These girls get it. They tracked and collected ten bags of trash and learned so much about their community and themselves. During the last half-hour they were psyched to work side-by-side with Loree. I gave each of them an autographed copy of her book which they’ve already read and shared with family & friends. At our next Girl Scout meeting each girl reported standing up in front of their classes to talk about their experiences. They were not asked or required to do that; their enthusiasm just brimmed over and their teachers astutely allowed them to share with everyone. Well done!”

 

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Tracking Trash on Indian Lake

Wow!

The International Coastal Cleanup came to Worcester, Massachusetts yesterday in the form of the Indian Lake Cleanup event. Over ninety men, women, and children collected debris from the shores and mudflats and recorded what they found for The Ocean Conservancy. Later this week I will send our data to COASTSWEEP, the Massachusetts arm of this massive, worldwide marine cleanup event. I’m still crunching numbers, but we cleaned more than 8.5 miles of shoreline, filled 43 bags with garbage, and hauled approximately 660 pounds of trash off the lake. Not bad for four hours work!