DNREC cancels Saturday’s Coastal Cleanup.
Wind and rain are in the weekend forecast as the tropical disturbance in the Atlantic makes landfall Friday evening somewhere along the mid-Atlantic coast.
DNREC’s annual Coastal Cleanup had over a thousand volunteers lined up for the one-day coordinated statewide trash cleanup event Saturday. Over 45 different sites were targeted for the cleanup.
Coastal Cleanup Coordinator Joanna Wilson says registered volunteers can still contribute.
"We can still make a difference. Registered coastal cleanup volunteers are encouraged to participate in the self-directed month-long cleanup, which began September 1st, and which DNREC inaugurated during the pandemic.”
Wilson reminds participants that it’s important to record your findings.
“Volunteers are also asked to submit their findings on the Delaware Coastal Cleanup Trash Reporting app, as we still need those numbers for DNREC and the Ocean Conservancy to be used for educational purposes."
Last year, 1,180 volunteers cleaned up 6,248 pounds of trash from Delaware waterways, wetlands and natural areas. The top trash items collected were cigarette butts, plastic and glass beverage bottles and cans and food wrappers and containers. 459 plastic bags were picked up, half the number from the 2021.
This is the first time in 36 years the Coastal Cleanup has been canceled.
