We have moved!

Thank you to everyone who has enjoyed Site Coordinator Corner over the past few years.  We’ve recently moved, and would love for you to join us at our new location on cyberspace.

Head on over to: http://canadianshorelinecleanup.wordpress.com

We will continue to share inspiring stories from Site Coordinators across the country, as well as the the latest articles regarding shoreline litter and the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.

See you there!

Congratulations Canada!

A huge congratulations goes out to the over 63,000 Canadians who registered for this year’s TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup at over 1500 shorelines.  The data is rolling in, and we’ll be sharing the results as soon as we can.  We’ve already heard some tales of unusual items at cleanups, and you can read about these here.

We’re also hearing some great stories from your fellow Site Coordinators.  Please enjoy the below snippets of the stories people have sent in so far, and please send us in any stories you’d like to share.

Robert Murray of Pinawa MB writes:

Despite the cool and rainy weather, 20 people came out for our first annual TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup along the Winnipeg River.  The good news is that our shoreline is quite clean.  We only managed to fill 3 large trash bags and 2 recycling bags – not counting the 9 tires that wouldn’t fit in bags.  We need to thank the people who don’t wait for a special day to pick up litter as their walk their dog or exercise along the trails.  The bad news is that we did find a bewildering variety of trash.  The “Antiques Roadshow” award goes to John Trueman, who scored a very cool old patent medicine bottle in pristine condition!

Zelda McKenzie of Hampton NB writes:

A big thank you to all the participants for a successful TD Great Canadian Shoreline Clean-up here in Hampton on September 20th. 2008. 21 participants joined in an effort to help keep our shorelines and marsh area clean, 11 of whom were from the HHS Green Team lead by Mr. Hall. We collected 200 lbs of garbage around Spooner Island and on the Kennebecasis River from Hampton to Darlings Island. Some of the types of litter we found were alarming, old tires, a TV, metal pipes and barrels to name a few. The world’s largest fresh water supply is found in Canada and it’s important that we make keeping it clean a priority. It only takes a moment to turn our boats around and pick up what has blown off or left at the shore. Keeping our nature clean is everyone’s responsibility.

Barry Baltassen of Winnipeg MB writes about his cleanup in Kenora ON:

It takes a community to raise awareness. That was the theme of the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup which took place on Kenora’s Laurenson Creek on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008. Organized by the Lake of the Woods District Property Owners, with assistance from partners Safeway, City of Kenora and TD Bank, the event saw 25 willing participants clean the shoreline.

A number of children made the day enjoyable and memorable with their enthusiasm. Duncan McEwen brought his two young boys Mason and Oliver fully expecting to look after the boys more than gather garbage. The boys fooled him. They wanted to pick garbage, and pick garbage they did, cleaning up the shoreline by the Safeway docks well before noon. Six year old Mason McEwen, “almost seven”, didn’t want to stop.  “Picking up garbage is fun and good for the environment,” said Mason, when asked what he liked most about the day.  Nine year old Even MacPherson and eleven year old Kaylyn Hamlyn expressed similar sentiments. The words of these small but mighty stewards of the land kept adults refreshed and inspired.

In total, 20 bags of garbage and 10 bags of recycling, representing 275 lbs. of trash over about one kilometre of shoreline, were collected.

Back to Shorelines

The start of September means that students are heading back to school and that Fall is on its way. September also means “Back to Shorelines” for our Site Coordinators! We have an astounding number of cleanups registered this year, and we are truly impressed by this year’s turnout.

We have been sending our packages out on a weekly basis so many of you will have received them already. You can also check to see if your package has been mailed by logging into your personal cleanup account and checking the “Package Sent Date” in the Cleanup Details box of the “My Cleanup Info” tab.  If you require additional supplies, please download the “Donation letter” template from the “Resources” tab for help seeking donations within your community.

The “My Cleanup Info” tab also displays the information we have been able to obtain from local municipalities. If there is no information listed, this means we did not receive any instructions. Please follow our normal recommendation of contacting your local city waste department directly to arrange this or using existing public bins (if available).

Have fun on the shorelines, and stay tuned for future posts on this year’s cleanup!

Their Help makes it all Possible!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Canada Day weekend in celebration of our nation’s 141st birthday.  This year also marks a milestone for the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.  We are celebrating our 15th anniversary.  Concerned citizens such as yourself have been cleaning our shorelines and tracking harmful litter since 1994!

The lasting success of our program could not be what it is today without the generous support of our donors.  Their support allows us to provide free cleanup supplies for your cleanups, and has allowed our program to continue to grow each year.  As we gear up and prepare to send out supply kits, we’d like to take the time now to recognize the support of our donors, who make it all possible.

For the 2008 Cleanup we’d like to thank:

• DOW Chemical – garbage bags for the entire country
• Encorp Pacific – recycling bags for participants in British Columbia
• Ansell Limited – gloves for every participant

On behalf of the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup and all of it’s participants across the country, Thank-you!

Student Heroes at Westmount Elementary

Congratulations to the students of Westmount Elementary for their continuing acts of bravery in making our planet a better place. Lianne Jones, winner of the 2007 Site Coordinator Award of Achievement (School Category), and her students were finalists in the Alberta Emerald Foundation’s education category for their roles in protecting our planet. They were recognized for their many Green Team endeavours, such as taking part in the Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Program and of course, the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. Last year, students collected over 3000 litter items and 50% of these were smoking-related.

Read more about Westmount Elementary’s amazing students here. Keep it up!!

We want to hear from YOU! If you have news to share, let us know and we’ll post it on the Blog! Send a quick e-mail to shorelinecleanup@vanaqua.org, and mention “Blog story” in the subject line.

Become a “Fan” of the Cleanup!

The TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup is now on Facebook! If you have a Facebook account (or even if you don’t), simply click here to head on over and visit. While you are there, be sure to show your support of the program by becoming a “Fan” of the Cleanup.

What does our page on Facebook have to offer?

You can:

• Meet other Site Coordinators and individuals interested in shoreline cleanups
• Check out our photo gallery from last year’s national event (and add your own!)
  
• Contribute to our discussion board
• Share your tips, stories, or unusual finds

Whether you’ve organized a cleanup in the past, helped out at one, or are just passionate about clean shorelines, please drop by.

See you there!

This week, it’s all about YOU!

For this entire week (April 27 – May 3, 2008), Canadians everywhere are celebrating their volunteers as part of National Volunteer Week. This week is the biggest celebration of volunteers and volunteerism in Canada, and YOU are a part of it!

This year’s theme is “From Compassion to Action”, and it truly captures the spirit of Site Coordinators and Cleanup participants. Your compassion for shoreline cleanups leads to tremendous action all across the country. We couldn’t be any prouder of your commitment to shoreline health.

The following pictures provide just a glimpse into the great work that you all do on our shorelines every September! Keep it up!

From all of us at the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup… THANK-YOU!

If you have not yet signed up to coordinate a cleanup, please visit the website at www.vanaqua.org/cleanup to register.

For more information on National Volunteer Week, visit the Volunteer Canada website.

Need some more green in your life?

Come check out the Green Living Show this weekend in Toronto at the Direct Energy Centre (Toronto Exhibition Place). Even Bill Clinton will be dropping by!

We’ll be there at the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup Booth, with information on the cleanup, and how the public can get involved in this year’s event. Our booth is #3442, past the main stage towards the Bike Track and Trials.

This year’s show has doubled in size and will feature over 400 exhibitors for all thing’s Green.  Be sure to come check it out!

Show hours:

• Friday April 25: 10 am – 9 pm
• Saturday April 26: 10 am – 9 pm
• Sunday April 27: 10 am – 6 pm

For more information on the upcoming show, visit the website here.

Hope to see you this weekend!!

You’ve done it Canada!

In case you didn’t catch it, your hard work in last year’s cleanup is big news!

Check out this story on the CTV.ca website:   100,000 kg of trash hauled from Canada’s coasts

Along with the 75 other countries who participated in the Ocean Conservany’s International Coastal Cleanup, more than 378,000 volunteers took to their local shorelines!  Just like Canada’s shorelines, cigarettes and cigarette filters took the top spot (1,971,551 collected across the globe!).  And with no major surprises, food wrappers and containers took the second place (693,612 items).

If you haven’t already registered for this year’s cleanup (Sept 20 – 28) head on over to www.vanaqua.org to register a cleanup location.  To date, we already have 526 cleanups registered (with an estimated 21, 937 participants!). 

Keep it up Canada!

Upcoming Workshop: Blue Flag in Ontario

What? A workshop to review the Blue Flag program in Ontario.

When? Thursday June 12, 2008 from 9:30 am – 3:00 pm

Where? Centre for Social Innovation – 215 Spadina Ave, Suite 120, Toronto

Why?

• introduce new beach operators to the program and provide an opportunity to speak and learn from those already participating;

• share experiences and ideas between those already involved in the Blue Flag Program;

• gain a better understanding of water quality issues, public health and lifesaving messages, developing educational activities as well as the importance of including tourism as a promotional/outreach tool;

• engage and establish relationships with local environment groups and their involvement in the Blue Flag program including monitoring and educational activities;

• give updates on what Environmental Defence is doing and to discuss other issues that may impact Ontario’s beaches

A highly recognized eco-label, the Blue Flag program works towards sustainable development at beaches and marinas through 27 criteria that deal with environmental education, water quality, environmental management, safety, and other services. The main objectives of the Blue Flag program are to improve our understanding of the coastal environment and to promote the incorporation of environmental issues in the decisionmaking processes of local authorities and their partners. In order to meet these objectives, the Blue Flag program brings together a variety of stakeholders and unites their efforts in the sustainable management and development of their coastal ecosystems.

Now in its 20th year, the program has grown significantly in size and scope. In 2007, over 3200 beaches and marinas from around the world were awarded the Blue Flag including nine in Ontario.

For more information: www.BlueFlag.ca or www.BlueFlag.org

How to participate:

RSVP to Jodi Frye so they can confirm numbers for lunch

jfrye@environmentaldefence.ca or 416-323-9521 ext. 233