Earth Day 2004

Well, my adventure this morning was the result of a confluence of a few events. First, Adrian got me thinking (global impact), then Sarah set a good example (local action), then Julie kept me thinking (raising awareness). And then I heard about this (event) while listening to this (community radio) and that was that. I was in.
Cleaning up a beach is just a really, really good idea. We’re all on this chunk of rock together, right? Maybe it’s time we think about how to share it.
Stump Pass is about 40 minutes south of Sarasota, at the southern tip of Manasota Key. I arrived a few minutes after 9am, registered (wrote my name on a nametag), was handed a t-shirt, a pair of gloves, a garbage bag, a bottle of ice-water and shooed on my way. Had a great time walking the trails and wandering the brush — took me back to my ecology days at school. Met some very nice people too. And there was food afterwards, which I wasn’t expecting — courtesy the Englewood United Methodist Church. Definitely doing it again next year.
The stats: 1 mile of shore, ~30 volunteers, 3 hours, 200 pounds of beer bottles, pop cans, plastic and all sorts of other junk that has no place on a beach.
Guess what the most-common piece of trash was?

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