When I was a child growing up in a small to midsized town, our local schools held paper drives; remember them?
The PTA, teachers, moms & dads and of course, us kids all pitched in. The idea was to collect as much newspaper as we could; wrap it in stringed-bundles and take it to school where it was deposited in stacks outside our respective collection areas.
Whichever classroom collected the most amount - in terms of weight - won. A prize along with mention in the local newspaper followed the winners for the rest of the school year.
As children, we only wanted the prize, but our parents knew these collections kept the paper off the streets and sales of the newspaper scrap contributed to the budget of the school. This allowed for a much cleaner town and less tax for residents toward the school district.
The reason I mention this is that Miami Beach has a similar program in place; and while the funds may not go to our school district, they do keep our beaches clean, they do help fund those who donate their time/effort and they do help keep the tourism alive and flourishing for our city of Miami Beach. What is this program? Glad you asked.
ECOMB (Environmental Collation of Miami and the Beaches) regularly sets out on weekends to clean our islands, canals, dunes, parks and beaches. They solicit volunteers from schools, businesses and residents to help out - and that costs money. They also work hand in hand with local business and residents to not only keep our beaches clean, but show business owners how to save money by recycling.
Jeff Forster, ECOMB’s Board Chairman, shared a story with me:
"I had been supporting ECOMB for a few years. After participating in several beach clean-ups, early this year I decided to bring my son Julian along. As is the case with young kids (Julian is 6), I thought he might be interested for two minutes, however, to my amazement, he lasted two hours!! He had so much energy and passion for cleaning up the beach saying, "Daddy cigarette butts, Daddy bottle caps" while running to pick up the litter. Now whenever we go to the park or the beach Julian races to pick up the trash left behind by others. The actions of removing harmful litter from our local environment stuck with him, and he gets so excited about his good deeds. I really believe that when you provide kids with the message of sustainability you get them for life."
This adorable story demonstrates the impact ECOMB has on future leaders in the community. Litter on our beaches and coastlines are a deadly threat to aquatic and terrestrial life alike and unhealthy for beach goers.
- You love clean beaches!
- A healthy local economy depends on clean beaches!
- ECOMB works to ensure our beaches are clean and our local habitats are protected, preserved and restored!
ECOMB needs your help
A year-end tax-deductible donation to ECOMB will ensure their litter prevention program grows and flourishes in the New Year to include more islands, more canals, and more areas of our coastline.
Adding more sites to the ECOMB clean-up schedule is crucial to addressing the damaging problem of litter.“ECOMB needs to raise funds to continue carrying out cleanup events as well as educational campaigns to promote clean, safe and healthy coastlines”, said Maura Reilly, ECOMB’s Program/Office Manager.
In addition to its successful cleanup programs, ECOMB also has implemented the very first Recycling Drop-off Station in Miami Beach, where residents can drop off not only their regular recyclables - glass, paper, plastic, metals - but also all their electronic waste, batteries, and compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL). “During 2011, ECOMB was able to divert over 2,300 batteries, over 100 CFLs, and almost one ton of electronic waste from our landfills, thus keeping harmful toxins from potentially contaminating our water supplies and providing the opportunity for these items to be reused or recycled”, said ECOMB’s Executive Director, Luiz Rodrigues.
This is that time of year when we can help those who tirelessly help us and in doing so, help protect our habitat and promote our tourism. It’s a clean win for everyone.
For information on how to donate online, click here or you may mail a check to: 210 2nd St, Miami Beach, FL 33139; ph: 305.534.3825.
Stay safe and sane and enjoy the beaches this holiday season guys and gals.
Comments