Our Daily Ocean: Day 129

Whenever I am going to meet someone at the beach to do a 20 minute clean up... I almost always have them meet me at Johnnie Mercer's Pier.  While there is always litter on the beach, it is there where the problem is most clear (no matter the time of year).  In an effort to raise awareness and have others see for themselves just how bad the cigarette litter problem is at WB, I invite anyone to come do a 20 minute beach clean up with us.  I'm most often joined by friends, but sometimes... I meet new people and make new friends all because of our 20 minute beach clean ups.  ...and yesterday, was a prime example of that ;)

Last night, Ben Bourgeois joined us at Wrightsville Beach to do a 20 minute clean up!  Ben (aka Benny B) is a pro-surfer and WB native that I reached out to (thanks friends!) during the voting of my Brita FilterForGood Film.  As the public hearing for the proposed smoke-free ordinance on WB was approaching, I once again reached out to him for support.  You know what's AWESOME?  Ben immediately jumped on board to help.  In fact, he's gone above and beyond anything I could have ever expected.  Last week, (less than a week since the smoking ban failed) Ben took 20 minutes at Oceanside Beach, CA and picked up cigarette butts. There he got 42.  Last night, at WB he picked up 158.  Problem?  (I'll leave that for you to decide)

Ben loves Wrightsville Beach... and being that he's traveled all over the world and can come home and say that Wrightsville Beach is still his favorite (and one of the most beautiful) beaches in the world... is a pretty amazing compliment for WB.  As Ben travels, he's going to try to do a 20 minute clean up at the beaches he visits to compare to WB!  He is all about helping raise awareness and I'm totally digging that!  

Photo credit: Ben Bourgeois 

Speaking of raising awareness... my friend Sara did a 20 minute beach clean up in Santa Monica last night.  Her beach was so trashed that she picked up over 7 lbs of litter... but get this.... in the same amount of time that we picked up 218 cigarette butts and Ben picked up 158 at Wrightsville Beach... Sara picked up 2 in Santa Monica (a smoke-free beach).  TWO.  Two cigarette butts in 20 minutes.  So far Sara and I have both done six 20-minute comparative beach clean ups.  Question: Do smoke-free beaches work to help reduce the amount of cigarette litter left on beaches?? 

6 clean ups Wrightsville Beach: 1,484

6 clean ups Santa Monica: 75

It sure looks that way.

20 minutes on March 23, 2012 at Access 16

Litter by weight: 3 lbs 8.6 oz

Cigarette butts: 218

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 129 days:

42,736

Our Daily Ocean: Day 125

Before the public hearing on the proposed smoking-ban on Wrightsville Beach, I prepared myself for the two possible outcomes.  I told myself that if the ban didn't pass that it was because I was supposed to do more... that something bigger was supposed to happen.  I do this often... when faced with a negative outcome, I look for the positive.  It helps me see the bigger picture.

So when the ban was voted down last Thursday, I... of course, teared up.. and then remembered what I had told myself.  "Something bigger is going to happen."  Maybe I willed it to happen... not sure.  But, the very next day, that something bigger started with my friend Sara who writes The Daily Ocean.  Sara began counting and tallying the number of cigarette butts she finds during her 20 minute beach clean ups in Santa Monica.  Yesterday, we both did 20 minute beach clean ups and I picked up 113 cigarettes off of WB and Sara picked up 17 on her smoke-free Santa Monica beach.  

(not so) FUN FACT: Our average at WB is 17 per minute.

Just the other day, my friend Ginger, picked up 232 cigarette butts while cleaning her adopted WB access.  As always, I added Ginger's count to the "Community Count" on the sidebar.... bringing the new total to: 10,678 

I do realize that when I share the amount of cigarette butts found on Wrightsville Beach, that it must sound absolutely horrible and disgusting.  But really it's not.  It's so beautiful and one of my favorite places to be.  There is, obviously, a problem that can only be solved by raising some MAJOR awareness.  Because really, it's just a shame that so many people disrespect Wrightsville Beach (and so many other places) by throwing their cigarette butts (and other trash) with no care as to how they affect other people, animals or the environment.  

OK... so more news!  Wednesday, I received a completely unexpected text message from Ben Bourgeois of a photo and text that read:

"42 cigs in 20 minutes.  Oceanside beach San Diego Ca. 3-14-2012".  

Can't even explain how happy that text message made me.  Besides seeing another low cigarette butt count from a different smoke-free beach... it is so RAD to inspire someone else!! <--- THAT is what this blog is all about!! YAY!!  I'm super stoked about Ben taking the time to do his first 20 minute clean up and I'm even MORE stoked that Ben is going to keep track and see how all of the places he goes compare to WB.  Yeah, I'll say it again... big things are happening... I can see it and I can feel it :)

 “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” ~ Mother Teresa

20 minutes on March 15, 2012 at Access 36

Litter by weight: 10.3 oz

Cigarette butts: 113

Total amount of cigarette butts removed from Wrightsville Beach, NC in 125 days: 

41,823