Many thanks to everyone who participated in Coastal Clean-up Day across the globe!

I have to admit I feel slightly guilty for not participating because I signed up to be a whale watch naturalist for the same day. Who knows how long the blue whales are going to hang around I said to myself.

But I don’t feel too guilty because I pick up trash all the time in my neighborhood, unfortunately there’s always trash. I’ve never actually caught anyone in the act of throwing trash on the ground, but nonetheless there it is in the morning when I walk to my car. Plastic bags, cigarette buts, balloons, full cans of soda, water bottles and one time I even found two puzzle boxes with the puzzle pieces still inside! Another time I convinced my husband to load an old television into his car that someone left on the side of the road and we drove it to an electronic waste site.

Picking up trash in coastal cities is important because very often it ends up in storm drains that lead directly to the ocean. Once in the ocean, trash becomes marine debris killing animals and sometimes washes up on the beach. So picking up trash on the street prevents trash from ending up on the beach.

So another thank you to all those who pick up trash on all the other days of the year too!