Tidal Wave of Trash
A Watershed Approach to the Problem of Marine Debris
By Linda Hunter
We are such a messy species. Our creeks, San Francisco Bay, and even the ocean have been deluged with a tsunami of trash. This was
evident during Coastal Cleanup Day last September and more recently on Martin Luther King Day when
hundreds of volunteers roamed the shoreline and picked up more than four thousand pieces of trash
in just one mile-long swath of shoreline. Plastics topped the list by far, most notably food- and
beverage-related items such as plastic wrappers, bottle caps and lids, straws, and plastic cutlery.
Where does this trash come from? It can result from human activity anywhere in a watershed. Whether it's an overturned trash can many miles from the ocean or from litter left on a beach. Land-based sources cause eighty percent of the marine debris found in the ocean, on our beaches, and in our waters. These sources include the trash accumulated by creeks, rivers, and streams, but also by landfills, floating structures, combined sewer overflows and storm drains.
The trillions of plastic bags produced worldwide each year have a propensity for ending up everywhere from our rapidly growing landfills to the tops of trees. Inevitably, they also end up in our creeks, bay and ocean. Made from petroleum, a nonrenewable resource, plastic bags also contribute to air pollution and global warming, earning them the air-land-sea contamination trifecta.
To address the issue of marine debris, The Watershed Project launched a new campaign--The Clean Shoreline Initiative--that seeks to transform the culture of environmental stewardship one watershed community at a time. The Clean Shoreline Initiative is a community-based marine debris prevention and action program that combines K-12 education, public outreach, and volunteerism.
Its intent is to raise awareness about the impact of human activity on our local environment in order to decrease littering and dumping in riparian habitats and reduce the presence of marine debris along the San Francisco Bay shoreline. Most of the debris that collects on the shorelines of the San Francisco Bay is washed down from the many creeks that are part of the San Francisco Watershed. As long as human behavior includes littering and dumping in creeks, shorelines will continue to accumulate debris and shoreline and riparian cleanups will be necessary. By raising awareness, The Clean Shoreline Initiative seeks to change that behavior, resulting in a significant reduction of marine debris.
Marine debris prevention requires a grassroots approach. The Clean Shoreline Initiative aspires to serve as a national model for watershed stewardship programs seeking to halt marine debris at its source. Perhaps through these efforts, we can start cleaning up our act.
