Last Friday these stalwart volunteer stewards donned their warmest winter wear and spent a couple hours picking up plastic and foam along the beach at Channel Preserve on Lopez Island. Their combined efforts filled a garbage bag, and although it doesn’t sound like much, it’s a huge success given how small many of the pieces were. 
Microplastics are less than five millimeters in length – about the size of a pea – so imagine how many tiny pieces you’d need to fill the bag!
We’ll be hosting regular beach clean ups on Lopez, Orcas, and San Juan Island this year. Please contact Tanja Williamson at tanjaw@sjclandbank.org to participate. If you’d like to learn more about efforts locally, and how you can be part of the solution, visit Plastic Free Salish Sea.