Our Daily Ocean: Day 117

Well... let's just get this out there.  Cigarette litter is a huge problem at Wrightsville Beach.  Over the past year and a half, I have done (with my family and friends) 117 twenty-minute beach cleanups.  The clean ups have spanned every season from the hottest to the coldest days on Wrightsville Beach.  I've burned my feet on the hot sand and been chilled to the bone by the cold winter winds.  I've picked up beer bottles, straws, caps, cans, toys, towels, underwear, condoms, plastic bags, diapers, tampons... some things come and go... some more than others.  BUT... as I'm sure you already know... there's one littered item that has stayed consistent throughout every season.  Cigarette butts.  No matter the time of year, they're always #1. 

In my garage sits 39,062 reasons why Wrightsville Beach needs to go smoke-free.  39,062 moments when people made the conscious decision to flick, stub out, or leave their cigarette butts on Wrightsville Beach... 39,062 cigarette butts and you and I both know that there's no way we've even come close to getting them all.  They blend in... and they get buried in the sand... 

As a mother of three young children, it's quite often that my kids dig cigarette butts up while building their sand castles (yes, this happened just yesterday)... and that's just wrong.  The cigarette filters are filled with toxins that can leach into our environment... and here our children are playing in sand that is littered with cigarette butts.   There is no reason that any of our children should be playing in a giant ashtray.  I support Smoke-Free Wrightsville Beach because all of our children deserve a clean and healthy beach to play at.  I'm asking for the support of everyone to help make Smoke-Free Wrightsville Beach a reality. 

Please add your name in support of Smoke-Free Wrightsville Beach

Big thanks to my AWESOME friend Ginger for meeting us out at Wrightsville Beach... AND... super high 5 hug thanks to all of my family, friends and readers like you who have shared their support for Smoke-Free WB!  I'm so grateful for this community!! :)

20 minutes on February 7, 2012 at Access 29

Litter by weight: 1 lb 4.1 oz

Cigarette butts: 187

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 117 days:

39,062