A Cultural Shift from a “Throw Away” Lifestyle
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A biannual newsletter of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, State Lands Division, Coastal Section and the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program WINTER 2017-2018 • Vol. XI, Issue 2 A Cultural Shift From a “Throw Away” Lifestyle General Manager Sara Kavanaugh (center) and Fisher’s Dockside staff promote Create a Clean Water Future as they “ReThink Disposables.” SeeSee storystory onon pagepage 4.4. Estuary Reflections: A Cultural Shift From The Alabama Coastal Bird de a “Throw Away” Lifestyle tly Insi 1 10 Stewardship Program Established in Curren Coastal Corner: Alabama Coastal Cleanup: Mobile and Baldwin Counties 2 30 Years and Going Strong 11 Small Projects Can Have Big Impacts “Save Our Seagrass” Education Environmental Stewardship: Orange Beach’s 14 Campaign Launched 6 Department of Coastal Resources 12 What Goes Down Sometimes Comes Up Chris Blankenship Appointed 8 The Peninsula: The City of Mobile’s Coastal 13 Plan Lower Alabama Now (P.L.A.N.) 1 6 Commissioner of Conservation and Community Natural Resources Alabama current connection 3 Coastal Corner BY ANGELA UNDERWOOD, COORDINATOR ALabaMA COASTAL CLEANUP, ADCNR STATE LANDS DIVISION, COASTAL SECTION Alabama Coastal Cleanup: 30 Years and Going Strong Rudy Sanfilippo with TerraCycle, Yael Girard with Weeks Bay Foundation, Angela Underwood with ADCNR, and Don Bates with Thompson Engineering in front of the TerraCycle Supersacks. The Alabama Coastal Cleanup “The Alabama Coastal Cleanup is an It has been a long standing goal of has been going strong for thirty incredible opportunity for volunteers to coastal cleanup to be able to incorporate years, and this year marked one of give back to their community by cleaning recycling into the event. This year Alabama harmful litter from our beautiful waterways Coastal Cleanup partnered with Thompson the best years yet. On September 16, while also learning that litter can have Engineering, Weeks Bay Foundation, the over 5,200 volunteers came out to devastating impacts to wildlife,” said Kara Alabama Coastal Foundation, and help “Get the Trash Out of the Lankford, zone captain at the Mobile Bay TerraCycle to collect and recycle plastics. Splash.” The event, which boasts Causeway cleanup site. “It’s one of the best The first-year effort was a success with close over 30 zones, appeals to volunteers educational opportunities in our community.” to 2,000 lbs. of plastics recycled. These of all ages and reinforces the strong Organizers of this long running event are plastics will be made into new products, such always looking for ways to increase the as shampoo bottles or toothpaste tubes. connection that many coastal positive impact of the cleanup on both the “We’re really pleased with the first-year residents have to our abundant environment as well as the participants, effort, but expect even more success in the water resources. and this year that meant the addition of years to follow,” said Don Bates, VP of plastics recycling. Operations for Thompson Engineering. 2 Alabama current connection While helping to clean up the coast Each year, coastal cleanup doesn’t occur is reward enough for most participants, without one or two surprises. “We always some are drawn back year after year find weird items while cleaning and this Alabama Coastal Cleanup is made by the prospect of finding unusual and year was no exception”, stated Lankford. unexpected items along the shoreline. “Two young men from Spanish Fort possible by the generous support of high school found a very large sum of 2017 Presenting Sponsor Poarch Band of Creek Indians Alabama Coastal Cleanup money while cleaning up trash. The boys immediately turned the money in to me. and many other sponsors including: By the Numbers I was so impressed by their honesty and integrity!” Bebo’s, LogoBranders, ExxonMobil, Yael Girard, Weeks Bay Foundation Alabama Power Company, LuLu’s, 5,200 Executive Director, hopes through these Ike’s Beach Service, City of Gulf Shores, volunteers events and volunteer opportunities, “our City of Orange Beach, Riviera Utilities, communities see the amazing coastal Utilities Board of Gulf Shores, Baldwin environment that we live in as something EMC, The Home Depot, Flora-Bama, to protect, enhance, and promote. We are MAWWS, Republic Services, Evonik, proud of everyone who comes together for Bluegill Restaurant, Compass Media, the Coastal Cleanup and all the initiatives Coast 360, ALFA, ALDOT, Honda 2,000 lbs. 30 in this area. Together, we are so much Manufacturing of Alabama, Vulcan plastics recycled zones stronger, so much smarter, and so much Materials Company, Alabama Farmers into new products more resilient.” The Alabama Coastal Cooperative, NOAA, The Ocean Cleanup would like to thank all of the Conservancy, ADCNR State Lands, sponsors and volunteers who made the Coastal Section and Alabama PALS event possible. Make sure to mark your (People Against A Littered State). calendars for next year’s event! Clean up crew at the Causeway Zone. Alabama current connection 3 Estuary eflections R BY TOM HERDER, WATERSHED PROTECTION COORDINATOR, MOBILE BAY NATIONAL ESTuaRY PROGRAM A Cultural Shift From a “Throw Away”Lifestyle The body of alarming data is growing. to work with local governments and food lementary school students In Science (February, 2015), the University establishments to develop cost-effective E of California Santa Barbara’s National models to reduce disposable packaging learn the alliterative Reduce, Reuse, Center for Ecological Analysis reported related to takeout food. Pre-project litter Recycle as three great ways to 8.82 million tons of plastic enter our oceans surveys in the Bay Area revealed that 67% help us, our communities, and the each year, with twice that projected by of trash in storm drains or catch basins environment save money, energy 2025. National Geographic reported there were related to take-out food and beverages. and our precious natural resources. are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic debris ReThink Disposable is a free technical Partners in the San Francisco Bay area, in the ocean, with 269,000 tons floating assistance program that helps food facing regulatory pressures, needing to on the surface and four billion plastic businesses implement best practices to quantify results, and also planning on microfibers per square kilometer littering reduce use of disposable food serviceware, a sustainable planet to leave to future the deep sea floor. Recognition of this reducing waste and cutting costs by generations, are charting a course with growing problem adds urgency to the minimizing disposable product usages. local business partners to reduce use of need for a cultural shift from single-use, One such business, the Sacred Wheel disposable products (e.g., single-use bags, “throw-away” lifestyles by earth’s human Cheese Shop, a popular lunch destination cups, bottles, straws, utensils, and other occupants. in North Oakland, originally opted for food-related items), reduce waste, and In San Francisco, with $257,293 from using compostable disposable packaging to save money. the EPA, the Clean Water Fund created help the environment. Owners determined a pilot project called ReThink Disposable the compostable plastics they used could not 4 Alabama current connection be composted in Oakland and were instead sent to the landfill. Owners switched to reusable mismatched silverware and ceramic ramekins and purchased inexpensive stainless steel water cups. Instead of bearing the expense of an additional salary to wash dishes, they rented a dishwasher that actually reduced water use, and current wait staff easily kept up with the demand for clean dishes. All waste material is either recycled or composted, saving costs of waste disposal. Annually, the Shop reduced waste by 602 lbs. and realized a cost savings of $3,768. Overall, with 109 business participants onboard, ReThink Disposable annually has realized a disposable packing reduction of 10.3 million items, waste reduction Simple choices that consumers tumbler to the next meeting instead of of 121,162 lbs., and cost savings of practice in their day-to-day lives can have using styrofoam, plastic, or paper cups; $394,033. The website, with videos of huge collective impacts on conserving remember to put your reusable totes back business champions and tips to engage resources, reducing greenhouse gases, in the car to avoid single-use plastic bags and educate the community to take preventing waste and litter, and reducing next time you shop; and avoid using straws action, is www.rethinkdisposable.org. plastics pollution choking our oceans. and plastic utensils when possible, being so Without a well-developed program Events like Coastal Cleanup draw bold as to keep metal utensils as an option. like ReThink Disposable, Fisher’s at the attention to the litter problem and its Anytime possible, opt for less packaging Orange Beach Marina has demonstrated relationship to stormwater runoff, but when making retail purchases, and buy the same stewardship ethos and forward “moving further upstream” and taking in bulk instead. Support businesses thinking. General Manager Sara Kavanaugh actions to reduce the raw materials of trash that embrace reduction strategies and reports the Dockside restaurant has fully and litter is a strategy we should embrace solutions. Do what’s necessary to Create transitioned to eliminating paper napkins, and employ. Bring a mug or reusable a Clean Water Future. plastic straws, and paper share plates. They joined the Create a Clean Water Future campaign, and included the CCWF logo and this statement on their menu: Fisher’s and Clean Water Future are partnering in efforts to keep the Gulf of Mexico beautiful. Help by limiting our use of plastic straws and paper products, as we are taking the first step in keeping our oceans and beaches clean. Please join us in our endeavor and visit CleanWater Future.com to get involved. Conforming to municipal regulations, staff members are restricted to using cups with lids, so Fisher’s will supply employees with non-disposable cups with the Fisher’s and CCWF logos to be used at work instead of styrofoam or plastic cups.