ITS A BEACH
A U.S. Fish and Wildllfie survey of albatross babies found
90% with plastic in their digestive systems.
BACKGROUND
Our
oceans provide most of the planet's oxygen, moisture, and weather patterns. As
the Oceanic Society says, "Without healthy oceans, life as we know it
would end" -- yet we've treated them as if they were expendable.
You
can't save the ocean by yourself .. but you can get involved, help focus
attention on the problem, and clean up a little part of the planet that needs
some loving care. You can adopt a beach.
DID YOU KNOW
Every
year on September 23, the Center for Marine Conservation sponsors a nationwide
3‑hour beach clean‑up.
It's remarkably effective. In 1987, in Texas alone,
volunteers collected: 31,773 plastic bags, 30,295 plastic bottles, 15, 631
plastic six‑pack rings, 28,540 plastic lids, and 1,914 disposable
diapers.
Around
the nation, the volunteer clean‑up crew picked up a total of 2 ntillion
pounds of debris ... in 3 hours!
Taking
plastic off the beach saves lives. Plastic fishing gear, bags, and other
plastic waste kill up to a million seabirds, 100,000 sea mammals, and countless
fish each year‑and it's getting worse.
SIM[PLE THINGS TO DO
Next
time you go to the beach, bring a trash bag. Then spend a few minutes picking
up any litter you find.
Join
the National Beach Clean~up‑ Call the Center for Marine Conservation
(below) for information on how to organize a group at your local beach. They'll
provide standardized data cards and beach clean‑up guides. You have to
provide the commitment.
SOURCES
Center
for Marine Conservation, 1725 DeSales St. NW, Wash. ington, D.C. 20036. (202)
429,5609.
The
Oceanic Society, 218 D St. SE,, Washington, DC, 20003. (202) 328‑0098.