By Founder and President Kurt Lieber
Four ODA regulars showed up to take another crack at removing plastics that migrate into the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge (SBNWR); the cleanup day was Thursday, July 17th.
ODA is the only nonprofit with a permit to clean this sensitve environmental area, and we take our responsibility seriously with monthly scheduled cleanups. Please let us know if you'd like to be part of this rewarding activity!
We’ve been scouring the banks of the wetlands for the better part of 3 years now, and regardless of how often we clean up the marshy waters, we are confounded by how much debris finds its way back in.
I arrived there the day before and drove around this (roughly) 1,000-acre wetlands. I was looking for sites where I saw the most amount of plastic items that we could remove. Problem was, there were huge concentrations of plastics embedded in the edges of the marsh grasses for thousands of feet.
I decided to hit an area that we’ve worked on dozens of times.
Our small-but-mighty group met at 9am and wasted little time in grabbing the tools and went to work for the next 3 hours.
The crew were: Dennis Arp, Dave Merrill, Kent Morris, and me.
We started in one area where the wind and tide seem to drive the debris into a corner.
This part of the wetlands has a high concentration of a plant called “picklegrass,” which some of the smaller birds use to nest in and hide from predators.
One specific bird we see there a lot is the Beldings Savanah Sparrow (see above pictures). They are a federal- and state-protected bird due to their diminished population numbers. But when I say “see them” that is a misnomer. They stay mostly in those plants and only venture out to grab something to eat nearby. Once they land in those plants, they are next to impossible to locate as they blend in with the background. I got this picture of a juvenile as it was out in the open for a moment.
We saw so many other beautiful birds - please be sure to look at the photo gallery at the bottom of the page before you leave!
As we were diligently removing all kinds of plastic, from wrappers to bottle caps to foam bed cushions, we even found an air mattress! Also stuck in the grasses were a couple of waterlogged wooden pallets… I highly doubt that they floated in there…
As our 3 hours were winding down, we also saw a magnificent osprey soaring overhead. Clearly, he was keeping an eye on our activities!
I estimate that we removed about 580 pounds of plastics, and those pallets had to weigh another 120 pounds. So, 700 pounds in total of debris out of harm’s way.
Ocean Defenders Alliance Wetlands Cleanup Crew with their "Catch of the Day"
One of the benefits of being part of the cleanup crew is spending time with people who care enough about the planet to give up a significant part of their day and getting to see some birds that you rarely see outside of this habitat. You can bet we’ll be back...every month!
And you’re welcome to join us. If you’re in the So Cal area and want to make a difference for your local wildlife, wetlands, and coastal waters, please email us and we’ll get you plugged in!
