News from the Department Of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Oct. 31, 2008 - Vol. 38, No. 503
For more information, contact Jennifer Hall, Delaware Coastal Cleanup Coordinator, at 302-739-9906 or DNREC Public Affairs at 302-739-9902. PHOTOS AVAILABLE.
DNREC Announces 2008 Coastal Cleanup Results
Approximately 1,700 volunteers took time at this year’s Delaware Coastal Cleanup on Sept. 20 to collect more than 20,000 pounds of trash from Delaware shorelines and tributaries. Volunteers from civic groups to businesses to families cleaned up 38 sites throughout Delaware from Wilmington to Fenwick Island.
Topping the list of unusual items this year are a bowling ball, tennis racket, shopping cart, truck bed, car engine, car windshield, water cooler, TV, dresser, grill, a New Jersey police officer cap, and washed up political signs.
The types and quantities of trash collected in the various locations are recorded on data cards and forwarded to the Center for Marine Conservation, which compiles the information for all of the cleanups held in the country and around the world. The information helps identify the source of the debris and focus efforts on eliminating or reducing it.
The Delaware cleanup is just one part of the International Coastal Cleanup sponsored by The Ocean Conservancy, whose sponsorship includes supplying trash bags, data cards and pencils. It is also co-sponsored with Delmarva Power which provides collectable t-shirts for the participants and Energizer Family Products which provides gloves. DNREC is responsible for organizing the event, recruiting volunteers, distributing supplies, ensuring trash removal and tabulating all the data collected. Many municipalities help with the trash pick-up.
The International Coastal Cleanup is the Ocean Conservancy’s flagship program dealing with marine debris and data collection. It is the oldest and largest one-day volunteer effort on behalf of the marine environment. Hundreds of thousands of people all over the world help each year to rid the environment of marine debris and collect detailed information on the types and quantities of refuse.
Delaware’s next Coastal Cleanup is set for Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009. Volunteers are encouraged to pre-register to ensure everyone has the supplies they need and receive a complementary International Coastal Cleanup t-shirt in appreciation of their effort. Interested volunteers can check out DNREC’s website at http://www.delaware.dnrec.gov next summer for registration information. For more information on The Ocean Conservancy or the International Conservancy, visit the Conservancy’s website at http://www.oceanconservancy.org.