One of the very few positive things to come out of the current crisis is the way in which wildlife has been allowed to return. We are seeing sea turtles return to beaches, dolphins swimming in Venice canals and deer on the streets of major cities, all a result of lower human activity. However, as the lockdown measures begin to be relaxed, we are seeing people return to their old ways – and much of it leaves a lot to be desired.
Nowhere has this been more clear than in Florida, where a relaxing of quarantine has allowed people to return to the famous golden beaches. According to The Hill Florida beachgoers left over 13,000 pounds of trash strewn across just one beach this weekend in what was a shameless display of selfishness.
Cocoa Beach is known for its gorgeous maritime environment and its international surfing competition.
Cocoa beach florida🥺😍 pic.twitter.com/sZlmUehCzh
— han🍓 (@_hanya_m) May 14, 2020
According to authorities there was a surge to the beach normally reserved for major public holidays, such as the 4th of July.
Cocoa Beach Police Department stated in response to the littering:“As restrictions are becoming more relaxed during this pandemic, the City of Cocoa Beach is beginning to see an influx of day-trippers to our beaches, along with piles of unlawfully discarded trash in their wake … this will not be tolerated.”
Going on to say that:
“focusing on litter violations in the days and weeks ahead in an effort to educate the public and mitigate this repulsive and disrespectful behavior.”
As much as 6 tons of trash was collected the prior weekend, and around 800 lbs of human trash was collected the weekend before that. This was clearly not an isolated incident and has been obviously increasing in severity since the restrictions on going to the beach were lifted on April 21st.
The executive director of local NGO Keep Brevard Beautiful, Bryan Bobbitt, believes the actual amount of trash has been higher due to trash collectors not picking up larger items like discarded beach chairs and tent poles.
Bobbitt told CNN:
“People will come from out of town and leave an umbrella, a tent or chairs because it’s a onetime use. Chip bags, plastic straw wrappers and anything can get blown into the dunes … when we see something that can be a choking hazard to marine life, we make it a point to get that stuff as well. If we don’t pick it up, it gets blown into the water. We’ve all seen the photo of the straw stuck in a sea turtle’s nose or a 6-pack ring around a bird’s neck.”
It is believed that only one citation for littering was given at the weekend, showing that most of this activity is going pretty much unchecked and unpunished by authorities.
Now that restrictions are likely to be lessened around the world, it is high time that humans, and the authorities, made a strict pact with nature not to return to the old ways and treat our environment with the respect it deserves.
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