Getting in Touch with Waste!

Taking calls on our Wildlife Advisory hotline has made it very clear for us that humans have introduced infinite dangers to the habitats all over Long Island.  Among the concerns of our callers are animals that have been attacked by pets, involved in building and car collisions, poisoned by pesticides and rodenticides, caught in fences, fishing line, glue traps, oil and sadly, so much more. 

The people who call us are often very concerned about the animals they find and the condition of our environment on Long Island... so are we!   It's very easy for anyone to look around and feel like they are in the minority of people that care about species beyond our own.  When we feel this way, we sometimes doubt our ability to make a positive difference in our environment for us and for Long Island's wildlife.  However, all hope is not lost for an environment where people can live with a lesser impact on our planet. 

Late yesterday afternoon, armed with some 40 gallon contractor bags, some of our staff and volunteers headed to the Ransom-Stehli Beach in Bayville.  We had one goal in mind:  to pick up as much garbage as possible in a brief 90 minutes.  We wanted to make that beach safer for the numerous birds that reside there, in addition to making it a more pleasant spot for people to enjoy!  

In the process of cleaning up, we had a lot of laughs, enjoyed the fresh air, got quite a few weird looks from beach-goers, did a bit of bird watching and learned a lot about the garbage that our society produces on a daily basis!  Below we share some photos from the afternoon. 

We hope you will be able to join us on our future Beach Clean-Ups or at our Town of Huntington Adopt-A-Highway Clean Ups throughout the spring and summer!!

Irony in a Foam Cup

This holiday edition of a Styrofoam Dunkin Donuts cup did not bring any "JOY" to the environment.

Was this coffee really worth hundreds of years in a landfill?

Please bring your own mugs to coffee shops!

Volunteer Alex removes a piece of an old boat from the Sound.

Here I am giving a thumbs down for plastic netting found on our beach!  This netting is an easy thing for many birds and turtles to get caught in.

 

Volunteer, Justin, peruses the wrack line for various plastic bits. 

We found plastic bags galore piled by the parking lot.

Say no to plastic bags at local stores!

Soda Can Rings and Plastic Utensils were also numerous on the beach.

Some of our staff carry metal utensils in our bags or in our cars, so we never need to use the plastic ones!  It's a great way to cut down on this kind of waste.  

Clinic Supervisor, Jess, shows some balloons that she found on the beach.  

Jess was happy to get these dangerous items away from this habitat.  
Please say no to balloons.  

Obscure trash finds included this plastic piece of kid's play corn, flip flops with no match, a toy plastic dinosaur and fish, and kid's shovels.  All in good condition. 

Remember to check your area thoroughly when leaving the beach as to not leave any items behind!

Plastic bottles are an environmental atrocity.  Recycling is not enough.

We need to reduce our consumption of bottled waters/juices/sodas.  
Every new bottle created adds pollution to our environment.

Our crew of six volunteers and two staff removed five bags of garbage, one bag of recyclable bottles, multiple enormous pieces of styrofoam, a piece of a boat,

and a large helium tank from the beach this afternoon.  We had a great afternoon and are happy to have removed these dangers from our environment. 

 Thumbs down for trash!

While at times things may seem hopeless, There is much we can do all over our Island.  

In 2013, please help us help our wildlife with small positive changes.  Taking small steps in our daily lives and choosing what we consume wisely, in addition to cleaning up our environment, will add up in the end!  Our local wildlife need us to keep our mess to a minimum. 

We enjoyed watching these Atlantic Brant, a migratory small goose species,  feeding right on the shore throughout our clean-up!