Beach Cleanup set for Sunday

Members of Brownie Troop 3669 at a previous beach cleanup.

If you’re interested in seeing cleaner beaches along the North Shore, Sunday is your day to pitch in.

Eva Browne, the head of the Asharoken Conservation Board, is organizing the local part of a state effort
to clean up the shoreline this month and document the kinds of trash found in the sand.

“We do the Centerport beaches,” Browne said, “in the Northport Harbor, around Eaton’s Neck and Asharoken, all the way around to Crabmeadow Beach on the Sound – all those beaches.”

Last year, Browne had 130 volunteers and is hoping for more this year because she has contacted more organizations such as Rotary groups and Scouts. Volunteers, who are urged to wear gloves, can obtain data recording cards and special trash bags from Browne by calling her at 516-769-5931. The work begins at 9 a.m. and ends by noon with a lunch that is being donated by Copenhagen bakery,The Ritz, Northport Harbor deli, Robke's, Cross Roads, 44 Bistro, Pumpernickels, Nocellos and Main Street.

In 2006, New York had more than 10,175 volunteers, one of the highest numbers in the nation, helping to document and clean 338 miles of shoreline. More than 272,000 pounds of trash were removed statewide, including 45,933 pounds of cigarettes and cigarette filters, the number one item on the beach trash list, according to Browne.

Most of the rest of the state had its cleanup on Sept. 15, but Browne scheduled the area for Sunday to stay out of the way of the Cow Harbor Weekend festivities. If rain prevents the cleanup, it will be rescheduled for Sept. 29. People who can’t make the cleanup this weekend are invited to contact Browne anyway for bags and data cards to participate any time in September.