Our Daily Ocean: Day 134

Saturday morning, we woke up early and headed to Wrightsville Beach to set up the Surfrider Spring Beach Sweep at Wrightsville Beach.  If you didn't know, my husband and I both volunteer with Cape Fear Surfrider... it's something that we really enjoy doing because we get to connect with a community of people who are taking an active role in protecting and caring for our beaches.  I always encourage everyone to learn more about the work Surfrider Foundation does to protect our oceans, waves and beaches for now and tomorrow... and wherever you are (and whether you're a surfer or not) to definitely get involved with this awesome awesome organization!

As the sweep started, I decided to do a 20 minute beach clean up.  Normally, I don't do our beach clean ups in the morning, but since I was already there... it only made sense!  So I set off following fairly far behind WB Mayor Cignotti, who was volunteering during the Surfrider clean up.  I thought since someone was already picking up ahead of me that there wouldn't be too much to pick up.  Wrong.

In 20 minutes, I picked up 212 cigarette butts.  When Mayor Cignotti finished, he had picked up 211!  Two other Surfrider volunteers counted a whopping 457 cigarette butts that they found on WB!  I've added those two counts to the community count on the sidebar, which pushes the community count for WB to: 11,561!!

Not surprising: Cigarette butts were by far the most found littered item during the Surfrider clean up.

Since today is Earth Day, I was really hoping to do another 20 minute beach clean up.... but it just didn't happen.  Much needed rain and an opportunity to sit down with a friend and talk about some important issues facing our area... meant that a beach clean up could wait until another day.  Besides, in my world... everyday really is Earth Day. :)

We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.  

~George Bernard Shaw

Happy Earth Day today and everyday!

20 minutes on April 21, 2012 at Access 29

Litter by weight: 4.6 oz

Cigarette butts: 212

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 134 days:

44,423

Our Daily Ocean: Day 98

Friday night was a SUPER exciting night!!  Moments after doing our 20 minute clean up at Access 36, we walked a bit north on the beach to see a Loggerhead sea turtle nest excavation!!!

It was so amazing seeing the teeny tiny baby sea turtles make their way to the ocean... and being there to witness this event solidified even more how important what we are doing really is...

One of my favorite sites for learning about sea turtles is SEEturtles.org.  If there was anything you ever wanted to learn about sea turtles... that's the place to go :)  By the way... did you know? 

It's estimated that only 1 in 1000 sea turtle hatchlings will make it to adulthood.  (...whatever it is that we can do to help them make it to adulthood... I feel like it's our responsibility to do so.... "No thank you plastic _______.")

Hatchlings use the natural light horizon along with the white crests of the waves to reach the water when they emerge from the nest.  Any other light sources such as beachfront lighting, street lights, car lights, camera flashes, etc can disorientate the hatchlings and send them in the wrong direction. (That's no bueno!)

Sea turtle hatchlings have a long road to adulthood... the moment they emerge from the nest, they have natural predators-- ghost crabs, birds, dogs, raccoons, fish, etc-- to scoot and swim past.   ...And once they make it... they now have to contend with deciphering between what is edible food and what is our completely unnatural toxic trash.  (Only WE can change that.)

Rewinding a bit:  On Thursday evening, we met our friend Sean with the Surfrider Foundation at Wrightsville Beach Town Hall with all 33,989 cigarette butts we've collected off of Wrightsville Beach.  Sean presented to the Board of Aldermen about micro-litter (specifically cigarette butts) on WB.  He ended with asking the board to revisit the idea of banning smoking on the beach...  

Only time will tell what the board decides to do with the information that Sean presented to them.  In the meantime... we'll still be heading out to Wrightsville Beach... doing 20 minute clean ups and counting cigarette butts.

20 minutes on September 9, 2011 at Access 36

Litter by weight: 2 lbs 10.6 oz

Cigarette butts: 193

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 98 days:

34,182