GLIN==> Adopt-a-Beach Sept. 25: You Can Help the Great Lakes

Alliance for the Great Lakes
For Immediate Release                                                          Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010
                                                   
                                                                                        
                                                
September Adopt-a-BeachT: You Can Help the Great Lakes 
 
Advancing Asian carp, an oil spill, a major trash washup on the Lake Michigan shoreline - the recent assaults on the Great Lakes can seem daunting. But you can play a vital role in making a difference. 
 
Volunteers are needed to help clear beaches of litter and debris all around the Great Lakes as part of the Alliance's annual September Adopt-a-BeachT cleanup on Sept. 25, the Alliance's 20th anniversary of the event.
 
Since 1991, some 61,300 volunteers have effectively removed more than 152 tons of debris from Great Lakes shorelines. 
 
The Alliance is poised to add to that number this fall, with 235 scheduled cleanups and counting in four states:  Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. Anyone interested in joining a cleanup is encouraged to check the Alliance's website at http://www.greatlakesadopt.org/ for a nearby event, or register to lead their own. Dates and times may vary depending upon location.
 
"Adopting a beach is something almost anyone can do to help the Great Lakes and feel like they're part of the solution," said Jamie Cross, acting manager of the Adopt-a-BeachT program. "It's empowering at a time when some of the problems facing our Great Lakes can seem overwhelming." 
 
 The event is open to all, including families, individuals, businesses, schools and community groups.  The September Adopt-a-BeachT cleanup is part of the Ocean Conservancy's International Coastal Cleanup Day -- the world's largest shoreline cleanup -- with cleanups taking place in more than 104 countries.   
 
Last year more than 5,682 volunteers in three Great Lakes states took part in the one-day event, removing 18,100 pounds of trash from 145 locations in Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. This year the Alliance also takes on the state of Wisconsin, serving for the first time as state coordinator of the Wisconsin coastal cleanup.   
 
Adopt-a-BeachT participants further the Alliance's healthy beaches campaign by entering their findings into a growing regional database that helps identify the most common sources of beach litter. Information gathered during the annual cleanup - as well as from cleanups held throughout the year as part of the Alliance's year-round program -- is used to encourage behavioral changes aimed at reducing the amount of litter found on beaches.
 
Beach litter is dangerous, as well as an eyesore. Small children play with cigarette butts, fish consume pieces of plastic, and birds get ensnared in fishing line and balloon strings - all common forms of trash found on Great Lakes shorelines.
 
To get involved and register online, see http://www.greatlakesadopt.org/home.php. For more information on the Alliance's year-round Adopt-a-BeachT program, see http://www.greatlakesadopt.org/.
 
 
Contacts
 
Illinois and Indiana:
Frances Canonizado, 312-939-0838 x227 or fcanonizado at greatlakes.org
 
Michigan:
Jamie Cross: 866-850-0745 x12 (toll-free), or jcross at greatlakes.org
 
Wisconsin:
Todd Brennan, 414-559-0317 or tbrennan at greatlakes.org
 
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Formed in 1970, the Alliance for the Great Lakes is the oldest independent citizens' organization in North America. Its mission is to conserve and restore the world's largest freshwater resource using policy, education and local efforts, ensuring a healthy Great Lakes and clean water for generations of people and wildlife. More about the Alliance for the Great Lakes is online at www.greatlakes.org. 
 
 
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