Islanders dotted the Vineyard’s coast on Saturday, sifting through the sand and reaching between rocks on a treasure hunt for trash.
For 33 years the Vineyard Conservation Society has hosted the Island’s largest beach cleanup to honor Earth Day and raise awareness about the dangers of plastics in the ocean.
Signe Benjamin, the membership and development director at the conservation society, has been the brain behind the event for roughly 18 years. She said volunteers picked-up 1,900 pounds of trash across 14 beaches on Saturday, though the nonprofit is still collecting data from other beaches.
“I think Islanders are aware and care a lot, and that’s why this is such a great event,” Ms. Benjamin said. “I’m always surprised every year about the turnout and the positivity.”
This year volunteers found large items such as a refrigerator door and beach chairs that could have been washed ashore or rusting in the sand since the summer. On the smaller side, cigarette butts and plastic water bottles were frequent offenders.
Many said they didn’t find as many nips compared to previous years, which they attributed to a ban that went into effect last spring for Oak Bluffs and Edgartown, the only two Vineyard towns with liquor stores.
Pissamai Silarak, who is originally from Thailand but has been living in Edgartown for the past 20 years, headed to the check-in station along State Beach with a smile and bag filled to the brim with trash.
Ms. Silarak said taking care of the planet is one of her greatest passions, so much so she named her son Earth. She walked the entire stretch of State Beach with her eyes peeled for colorful shards of plastic peaking out from the sand, and said her most exciting find was a battered umbrella.
“I think we have to appreciate the Earth because it provides everything,” Ms. Silarak said. “No matter what the garbage is, we should [always] pick it up.”
Michael Krause, the president of Friends of Sengekontacket, and executive board member Chris Hall passed-out doughnuts to volunteers on the Oak Bluffs side of State Beach. Both said that not only does the cleanup protect the environment, but it sets a good example for younger generations.
“We want to be good examples of stewards of the area we live in,” Mr. Hall said. “This is very important to us. We’re willing to brave the wind and weather - whatever it takes to get the job done.”
At Inkwell Beach, Andy Carr, an Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America, and his sister Gabby Carr, who is studying sustainability at Roger Williams University, were picking trash out of beach grass.
“Plastic can harm animals [if] it gets into the ocean,” Ms. Carr said.
After the trash was collected, volunteers gathered at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum for the Earth Day festival, where 20 organizations lined the lawn with informational tables. Island Grown Initiative presented a food scrap composting bin and Beach BeFrienders showed-off crafts made from discarded fish nets and rope.
Ms. Benjamin said the festival is only in its third year but goes a long way to raise awareness about all the conservation efforts on the Island. She hopes the “Earth Day is everyday” notion resonated with volunteers.
“It’s not just feel good, it’s actually doing something,” Ms. Benjamin said. “So we [need to] keep that momentum year round.”
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