Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup 2012 in Port Moody

The Port Moody Ecological Society keeps salmon happy and our inlet beautiful. The group runs Noons Creek Hatchery, a 100% volunteer operated coho and chum hatchery, as well as a water quality testing program beside. They also present the annual Fingerling Festival in Port Moody, and each year they help coordinate local activities for the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. 2012 is no exception – and this year they’re really going all out.

The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup started in 1994, when the Vancouver Aquarium coordinated a small team of volunteers. The team conducted a local shoreline cleanup in Stanley Park. The event slowly grew, and in 2002, the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup became a national program. In 2011, more than 56,000 participants removed 143,737 kg of litter from 3144 km of shoreline. In Port Moody it was a record-setting year, with 164 volunteers collecting 213 kg of trash from along the inlet.

For 2012, the Port Moody Ecological Society would like to break last year’s record. They’re inviting you to join them at Noons Creek hatchery between 9:00 and 11:00am on September 22, 2012. They will clean along Noons Creek and the Shoreline Trail of the Port Moody Arm of Burrard Inlet. Volunteers should bring their own sturdy boots, old clothes that can get dirty and possibly wet, and shopping bags to collect garbage.

The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup remains a grassroots conservation program that promotes understanding and education about shoreline litter issues. It does this by engaging Canadians to rehabilitate shoreline areas through cleanups. The program influences Canadians to act, becoming better environmental citizens. And really, the world can always use better environmental citizens. If you’d like to be one of them, sign up online to help out at Shoreline Park, from Noons Creek to Old Mill Park.

If you’re not able to make the Shoreline Cleanup, but you’d still like to help out, the Port Moody Ecological Society is always looking for volunteers. Drop by Noons Creek hatchery any day between 9:00 and 11:00am or call 604.469.9106 to find out more.