This past weekend marked the Ocean Conservancy’s 40th annual International Coastal Cleanup. This worldwide effort aims to remove trash and debris from beaches to combat plastic pollution and create a cleaner ocean. SCCF’s Coastal Watch organized its own cleanup on Sanibel and Captiva during this global day of action. 

“We had over 350 amazing volunteers join us this past Saturday to help clean our beaches!” said Coastal Watch Director Kealy Pfau. “We are once again blown away by the collective action of our island communities. From company groups, to individual coastal community members, this day wouldn’t have been possible without each and every one of you.”

We had more than 20 groups represented, including Bank of the Islands, WINK News, Doc Ford’s, CROW, Sanibel & Captiva Islands Association of Realtors, SiteOne, and Sanibel-Captiva Rotary, among many others. Their collective efforts truly made this day unforgettable.

A huge thank you also goes out to the cleanup sponsors for helping make this day possible. Presenting Corporate Sponsor Bank of the Islands once again took the lead in sponsoring the cleanup and provided the cleanup t-shirts! 

Bones Coffee stepped up this year as the cleanup’s breakfast sponsor, providing coffee and breakfast before the cleanup to fuel this volunteer event. Finally, a big thank you Hooked Dumpster for once again donating a dumpster to assist in properly disposing of the collected trash.

“Thanks to our amazing community, volunteers removed over 900 pounds of trash from Sanibel beaches,” said Pfau. 

From large debris to small microplastics, each piece of trash contributes to a cleaner and plastic-free future for our oceans.