DIY BEACH CLEAN UPS

Option 1: pick up trash while you’re out (on the beach, neighborhood, park, etc.).

Option 2: plan a beach clean up outing. See below for recommended tools and best practices.

VERY IMPORTANT TIP: toss trash collected in bins at home to prevent overflow of public cans.

Bucket (or a bin, reusable tote, etc.).

Gloves—Work/gardening gloves or rubber gloves. Avoid disposable single-use gloves.

Trash picker tools—For cigarette butts or picking up trash in hard to reach places like rocks and plants.

Wear gloves for protection. Plastic (especially Nurdles) attracts and concentrates environmental pollutants like DDT and PCBs to highly toxic levels.

Stay away from foliage and any sensitive wildlife areas.

Look for microplastic and Nurdles, these are highly dangerous to the marine ecosystem. They are found near the following:

• Paths—Look on sheltered tracks and paths at the edge of the beach.

• Vegetation—Blown on shore from the sea they get caught in the base of the grasses at the top of the beach.

• Strand line—The Ocean washes them up to the high tide mark where they get trapped in the strand line debris.

• Headlands—Beach litter often accumulates near the headlands of bays.

Trash—Dispose at your residence, not in the trash bins at the beach. These often overfill contributing to the beach litter problem.

Recyclables—Place in your recycling bin at your residence. Unless items are dirty, either wash yourself or throw away in the trash to avoid contamination.

Cigarette Butts—Discard small amounts in your trash. If you have a large amount, we can help you send these to Terracycle for recycling.

Microplastic and Nurdles—These are not recyclable and are highly dangerous to the marine ecosystem. It is important that these are properly handled and disposed of in a container where they will not blow away before placing them into the trash.