HOLIDAY, Fla. — Litter can start on a road, in a park or even in a neighborhood. But eventually, it can make its way into local waterways.
Hundreds of volunteers are expected to take part in the annual Keep Pasco Beautiful cleanup Saturday, Sept. 19, at locations throughout Pasco County. The event is designed to remove litter and debris before it enters stormwater systems and reaches rivers, lakes and open water.
WATCH: Local group targets litter before it reaches waterways
Kristen King, President of Keep Pasco Beautiful, says she has a hard time ignoring litter when she sees it.
"Every time I drive I'm just like, oh my god, look at the litter and who would do that?" she said.
King recently showed several examples of litter at Anclote Gulf Park in Holiday, where garbage was sitting just steps from the water.
"Capri-Sun! Full with a straw to boot," King said.
She also pointed to plastic bags that could easily be carried by the wind.
"These types of things here, they are just going to fly away these bags. It's just going to catch the wind and end up in the waters," she said.
King also found discarded fishing line tangled in mangroves.
"This is floating into our waters. Fish are eating it. We are eating plastic," said said.
Keep Pasco Beautiful's year round mission is to reduce litter, promote waste reduction and encourage beautification.
The organization says about 80% of the trash found in waterways originates on land, making litter removal along roads, parks and other public spaces an important part of protecting local waterways.
The annual cleanup is part of the International Coastal Cleanup coordinated by Ocean Conservancy. Last year, 1,170 volunteers worked at 52 locations throughout Pasco County and collected 51,320 pounds of trash.
"I was a youth who got started doing coastal clean ups and the families, the companies, the community orgainziations that come out there. It's just really inspiring to know that we have such great throughout the county," said John Fey, Executive Director.
Cigarette butts remain a common form of litter, but Keep Pasco Beautiful says volunteers are also seeing discarded vape pens.
Unlike ordinary trash, vapes contain lithium ion batteries and other materials that require special handling. The batteries can also create a fire hazard when they are thrown into regular trash or recycling.
King hopes the cleanup will do more than simply fill garbage bags. She wants it to teach younger generations to take responsibility for the places where they live.
"The reason that it matters is we are teaching them that there is no trash fairy, that if you just pitch something and you just liter it doesn't magically go away. And it's gross!" King said.
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