Beach Clean-Ups

Marine debris is not only unsightly - it's unhealthy and dangerous to wildlife.

Each year Georgia Strait Alliance sponsors beach clean-ups in our region. Over the years, hundreds of volunteers, of all ages, have removed many tonnes of trash from local beaches!

Most of our beach clean-ups take place in September, as part of the annual nation-wide Great Canadian Beach Cleanup. But we're happy to sponsor additional cleanups at other times of the year, whenever a group of willing volunteers is available.

Before sending the debris off to the landfill and recycling depot, the volunteers count and catalogue the items they've found.

The data they collect becomes part of the International Coastal Cleanup, the planet's largest volunteer marine environment protection effort. More than a million people in over 100 countries have taken part in this effort since 1989, and the data they've gathered is used to create public education campaigns and new law and policy to reduce marine litter. 

Learn more:

• The Courtenay Estuary Clean-Up
• Marine Debris is Everyone's Problem: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fact Sheet