Fourth of July celebrations leave 350 pounds of garbage in Whatcom County parks

ISABELLE DILLS - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

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A small number of volunteers gathered together for a big cleanup at local parks and beaches Sunday, July 5, following Independence Day celebrations.

Less than 30 volunteers met at Marine Park, Locust Beach and Cherry Point at 9 a.m. where more than 350 pounds of trash and recycling was collected, said Doug Stark, the education coordinator from RE Sources, and Wendy Steffensen, the North Sound baykeeper.

The clean up was organized by Steffensen and the Northwest Straits Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, an environmental organization.

Volunteers at Marine Park found the garbage cans overflowing and most of the litter strewn through the parking lot, Stark said. The beach at Marine Park was pretty clean, but when the group walked farther to Post Point, they found enough garbage to fill about 12 trash bags, he said.

The garbage, which consisted mostly of beer cans, bottles and debris from fireworks, was separated between trash and recycling at each clean up site, Stark said. In total, about 218 pounds of trash and 133 pounds of recycling was collected, according to numbers provided by Stark and Steffensen.

"The amount of trash and recycling collected was a fraction of what it usually is," said Steffensen, who has participated in the annual event for six years.

The economy may have prevented people from buying more fireworks, or people may have been more conscious about cleaning up after themselves this year, she said.

Stark said he was a little disappointed that more people didn't volunteer for the clean up but was thankful for those who did.

"Garbage that doesn't get picked up washes down into storm drains and into the bay...where it persists forever," he said. "It eventually (breaks down) into smaller and smaller pieces, but it doesn't mean it's gone."

It's easy to place blame on others for the litter found in the parks and beaches, he said, but pointing fingers won't solve the problem.

"That's in the past. Now it's time for everybody to help out," Stark said. "We could all be guilty of leaving something behind accidentally."