Volunteers in Hancock, Harrison and Jackson counties are needed for the 22nd annual Mississippi Coastal Cleanup to be held from 8 a.m. – 11 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 16, in conjunction with the International Coastal Cleanup—the world’s largest volunteer cleanup effort on behalf of the marine environment. Gov. Haley Barbour recently signed a proclamation in support of the annual event organized by the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources and the Mississippi Marine Debris Task Force.
“This summer, we endured a very strong reminder of how valuable our coast is to all of us,” Governor Haley Barbour said. “A clean, litter-free coastline is vital to the marine wildlife and coastal wetlands, and it’s crucial to the enjoyment of residents and visitors.”
“The 2010 Mississippi Coastal Cleanup will not include the beaches and barrier islands,” Lauren Thompson, state coordinator for the Mississippi Coastal Cleanup, said. “Volunteers will focus instead on removing marine debris and litter in areas off the immediate shoreline. Trash travels. Litter tossed upstream makes its way into the Sound and onto our beaches.”
This year the cleanup will focus on inland areas and waters in an effort to avoid disturbing oil spill recovery efforts on the beaches and barrier islands. In addition, the Mississippi Coastal Cleanup has joined forces with Renew Our Rivers to expand the cleanup’s inland efforts. The four-day Renew Our Rivers cleanup event will begin Wednesday, Oct. 13, and will culminate in conjunction with the Mississippi Coastal Cleanup on Saturday, Oct. 16.
“Like Coastal Cleanup, our efforts depend on the sheer force of volunteers, which includes our employees, as well as other corporate, community and agency partners,” said Tracy Heggins, a Renew Our Rivers coordinator with Mississippi Power. “Our partnership with Mississippi Coastal Cleanup and others is a natural fit. We all have a common goal to clean more waterways and to better our communities—together we can do that.”
Registration deadline for the Mississippi Coastal Cleanup is Oct. 4. Register online at www.mscoastalcleanup.org, or to obtain a registration form and sign up to volunteer call: 467-9048 in Hancock County; 214-1405 in Harrison County; and 938-6612 in Jackson County.
On cleanup day, zone captains will be stationed at each cleanup site in bright yellow T-shirts to direct volunteers and give them supplies such as trash bags, data cards to record the debris collected, as well as bottled water compliments of the Beverage Association of Mississippi, and a free eco-friendly tote provided by Chevron Pascagoula Refinery (while supplies last). Following the cleanup, volunteers must present their meal ticket at Courthouse Road Pier parking area on Highway 90 in Gulfport where they will enjoy a free lunch courtesy of the High Cotton Grill from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. only on event day.
During the 2009 International Coastal Cleanup, more than 498,818 volunteers in 108 countries removed more than 7.4 million pounds of debris from the ocean, rivers, lakes and waterways.
“Last year, Mississippi ranked in the Top 10 in the country in number of volunteers.” Thompson said. “In Mississippi, 3,205 volunteers pitched in and removed 23 tons of trash from 66 sites along the shoreline and coastal waterways as part of the 2009 International Coastal Cleanup.”
Source: Mississippi Department of Marine Resources