Dozens of volunteers spent Sunday morning cleaning up Treasure Island’s beach after Fourth of July celebrations left behind piles of litter.
The group, Treasure Island Adopt-a-Beach, brought together 39 volunteers who filled 90 bags with a total of 450 pounds of trash. The debris included food wrappers, towels, leftover fireworks, and large amounts of plastic bags.
“What happens is when you come out and volunteer, you really feel great about what you’re doing,” said Carrie Auerbach, founder and lead volunteer of Treasure Island Adopt-a-Beach.
Volunteers said the cleanup carries added urgency during sea turtle nesting season. Plastic bags left on the beach can break down into small pieces or be mistaken by turtles for jellyfish, one of their food sources.
“Towels, some fireworks, a lot of plastic, a lot of plastic bags,” said volunteer Robin DeMay. “That’s what saddens me because that’s what the sea turtles eat, thinking that’s the jellyfish. So that’s what we’re out here for.”
Volunteer Sandra Leone said that sun exposure accelerates the breakdown of plastic left on the sand into smaller fragments that become harder to spot and remove.
Auerbach said an estimated 80% of trash left on land eventually ends up in the water, and the group also sent a dive crew to snorkel along the shoreline in search of underwater debris.
This year, the group used a large rake to help clear fireworks debris from the sand, which organizers said sped up the cleanup compared to removing the material by hand.
Follow the St. Pete-Clearwater Sun on Facebook, Google, & X
St. Pete-Clearwater Sun: local St. Pete-Clearwater news at PIE-Sun.com
Leave a Reply