Rope, buoys, toilets: Aquaculture Alliance annual beach cleanup underway

The P.E.I.Aquaculture Alliance considers it part of taking care of the environment where they work, and the annual beach cleanup can find some unusual items.

"Garbage from lots of different places, unfortunately," said Peter Warris, director of projects for the alliance.

"Bits of rope and buoys, broken up lobster cages, old tires, water bottles, other bottles and cans and stuff. Found a whole toilet that somebody had just dumped off at one place once."

Volunteers who work in the industry are fanning out across the province to clean up different sections of shoreline.

The cleanup is usually arranged for one time across the Island, but because people can't gather in large groups during the pandemic, the alliance has set aside the whole month for smaller-scale cleanups around the province.

The industry has a vested interest in taking care of the Island and the water around it, said Warris.

The alliance is happy to be directed towardany beaches where the situation is particularly bad.

"There's a lot of shoreline out there and half the battle is knowing where to go," said Warris.

The alliance works regularly with the Island Nature Trust during the beach cleanups, which keeps volunteers aware of nesting areas for piping plovers, an endangered species. It's important to leave those areas undisturbed during the spring nesting season.

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