Lisa Fauto, of environmental group Vert Rivages, said her team was able to collect about 8,200 pounds of litter, including 123 lobster traps. According to her, a recent survey of all beaches in the area found that 160 lobster traps were washed away along this part of the coast.
There were also plenty of consumables, like cups, foil bags, and handfuls of dental floss.
Dental floss handles are a common beach-washed item, according to Lisa Fouto. These lightweight objects are easily carried out to sea by wind and tides.
Image source: Lisa Fauteux
We have a plastic pollution problem. And I think this is the type of item that should not be used at all
, she said about dental floss.
We have a lot of plastic in our lives. It’s brought up as if you sometimes don’t even notice it.
According to Lisa Fauteux, this debris can harm the plants and animals on the beach, including the birds and the grasses that nest in it, which protect themselves from erosion. And if the waste is dumped into the sea, it can harm aquatic life.
One waste at a time
Anything we can do to help get rid of this waste is very helpful
and tightened. It makes a noticeable difference.
His group received funds from the Environmental Trust of New Brunswick. He works with other partners, including Homarus, a research group associated with the Marine Fishermen’s Association, and Nature N.-B.
Their goal is to collect 50 tons of waste within two years.
Last year, about 30 people showed up to help out on cleaning day, but the weather has been better, according to Lisa Fauto.
Luc LeBlanc believes that lobster traps often end up stuck ashore, where they are usually placed in shallow water.
Image source: Lisa Fauteux
It was mainly the fishermen who attended Thursday morning, which she said showed their commitment to the project.
The fishermen intervene
Luc LeBlanc, a fishing consultant for the Marine Fishermen’s Union, argued that Guys are so excited
. They depend on clean and healthy surroundings for their livelihood.
It is also believed that more traps have been washed ashore recently.
According to him, the weather is the reason. If there is a big storm, more equipment will be washed ashore. Either the rope breaks, or the machine sometimes drifts tens of kilometers from the place of its deposit.
, It is to explain.
It is definitely a matter of climate change
, he added. Marine conditions are worse today. The water became more violent than before.
Luc LeBlanc said most of the retrieved traps are “really, really old” but still less than 20 years old. Hunters switched from wooden traps to metal traps in the early 2000s.
Image source: Lisa Fauteux
But there’s also more clean-up efforts being made.
We find more because we seek. Most beaches targeted for cleanup have not been cleaned for 10 to 15 years.
Reuse lobster pots
It is usually lobster traps, not lobster traps, that drift on beaches because they are close to shore and in shallow water, making them more vulnerable to storm surges.
If they are not too damaged and the stickers are still there, they can be returned to their owners and reused.
Luc LeBlanc said. A regular lobster trap costs about $60.
Most of the time they are sent to a junkyard
Adding that it can be hard to find a place that really recycles them, as there is no specialized system in the preservation.
Generally, these cleanups take place after each hunting season, according to Luc LeBlanc.
There will likely be one in October, in Zone 25 southeast of New Brunswick, when the hunting season is still underway.
From text by CBC
