Despite very wet, cool weather, 90 dedicated volunteers participated in the annual Mayne Island Beach cleanup, held on Sunday, May 15th. A big thank you to all the beach cleaners, captains, and depot crew that came out on Sunday, and also thanks to those of you who have picked up garbage on your beach walks throughout the year! This year’s cleanup removed 583 kg of plastic, styrofoam, tires, and other garbage from our beaches: that’s over half a metric tonne of material that would otherwise pollute our natural environment and cause harmful effects to intertidal and marine life.
One of the more unique items, found in Maude Bay, was a vintage glass bottle that once contained “Kreml” hair tonic. A bit of internet sleuthing by volunteers soon turned up a matching vintage ad for the product.
A number of participants noticed the mess caused by the breakdown of styrofoam into tiny granules that are almost impossible to remove from the beach. If you share this concern, please consider writing a letter to our MLA, Adam Olsen, and our Environment Minister, George Heyman, to take action to regulate or ban the presence of styrofoam in the marine environment.
1 Comment
Gin · June 4, 2022 at 9:24 am
Thanks a million to our intrepid beach cleaners! I was away this year, and deeply appreciate your efforts!
Gin