The Town of Bluffton is proud to once again participate in the
annual Beach Sweep/River Sweep on Saturday, September 19th.
Each year thousands of volunteers across the state will participate in the 27th
Annual Sweep, which is South Carolina’s largest one-day, volunteer, litter
clean-up of beaches, marshes and waterways.
The Sweep will take place from 9 AM to 11:30 AM at the Oyster
Factory Park at the end of Wharf Street. We invite volunteers to join us for
coffee provided by Bluffton Starbucks before we kickoff, and then to stay
following the event for a free lunch provided by the Hardeeville Wal-Mart
(Store #2832). In an effort to make the Town’s cleanups as sustainable as
possible, i2 Recycle will be recycling the suitable debris collected. Necessary
supplies including gloves, bags, sunscreen, and water will be provided. This is
made possible through donations by Palmetto Pride, Keep Beaufort County Beautiful,
the Beaufort County Solid Waste & Recycling Division, The Outside
Foundation, Adams Outdoor Advertising, the Bluffton Rotary, and Be Green
Packaging.
If volunteers are interested in reserving a kayak, please call
Marshgrass Adventures at 843-684-3296. Outside Hilton Head will be launching
from Palmetto Bluff at 11:00AM. If interested in reserving a kayak from Outside
Hilton Head, volunteers should contact them at 843-686-6997. Anyone with a boat
or kayak is encouraged to bring it. Pedestrian volunteers will remove trash
from parks and roadsides throughout Old Town to prevent litter from entering
the May River
We invite individuals, families, friends, schools, youth groups,
civic groups, conservation clubs and businesses to come out and participate. Last
year in Bluffton approximately 80 volunteers removed 700 pounds of debris!
S.C. Sea Grant Consortium and S.C. Department of Natural Resources
have organized this annual statewide event since 1988. The Sweep takes place in
conjunction with the International Coastal Cleanup, coordinated by the Ocean
Conservancy. Once the Sweep is over, the Ocean Conservancy tallies all of the
debris data. This data helps us to learn the sources of litter to stop
pollution before it starts.
