International Coastal Cleanup September 21st

The Friends of South Walton Sea Turtles invites the South Walton community to join them in participating in the International Coastal Cleanup on Saturday, September 21st from 9-11 am. 

International Coastal Cleanup is a worldwide event sponsored by Ocean Conservancy; they engage countries around the globe to organize citizens from large cities to small villages in the cleanup of their oceans, gulfs, lakes and river beaches.

Walton County is one of these coastal areas and has the opportunity to participate with millions across the globe to cleanup the coastline and prevent debris from polluting Gulf waters.

Some interesting facts: During the 2018 International Coastal Cleanup, the top ten items picked up were:

#1 Cigarette butts 5,716,331.

#2 Food wrappers 3,728,712.

#3 Straws & stirrers 3,668,871.

#4 Forks, knives, spoons 1,754,908.

#5 Plastic beverage bottles 1,754,908.

#6 Plastic bottle caps 1,390,232.

#7 Plastic grocery bags 964,541.

#8 Other plastic bags 938,929.

#9 Plastic lids 728,892.

#10 Plastic cups & plates 656,276.

1,080,358 people worldwide picked up 23,333,816 pounds of garbage. Who were the heroes who helped clean up 22,301 miles of coastline in 2018? This year, there are four South Walton Cleanup sites for 2019. This is a REALLY BIG DEAL! Can one imagine being a part of this massive global effort? Come out and help on September 21st.

To learn more, please visit www.oceanconservancy.org/

If interested in participating, simply report to one of four regional beach accesses listed below:

Inlet Beach Regional Access
438 South Orange Street Center
Panama City Beach, FL 32413
Long: ‐86.00393018
Lat: 30.27401447

Santa Clara Regional Beach Access 
3468 E. Scenic Highway 30A
Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
Long: ‐86.11926901
Lat: 30.31363771

Ed Walline Regional Beach Access
4447 W. Scenic Highway 30A
Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
Long: ‐86.22992065
Lat: 30.34666444

Miramar Beach Regional Beach Access
2375 Scenic Gulf Dr.
Miramar Beach, FL 32550
Long: ‐86.38752755
Lat: 30.37819479

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