On September 20, 2026 twenty Hanford Bay neighbors and relatives gathered at the beach side of the Moran Road Right-Of-Way to sweep the Bay’s shoreline for plastics and other materials that pollute the beach and the lake. The weather cooperated so that we did not have to contend with strong breezes attempting to cause the “Sorting Tent” to sail down the beach.
After opening remarks from some Hanford Baykeepers Steering Committee members, the Sweepers set out with their buckets and gloves to remove the unwanted items. It wasn’t long before they began to return with their buckets full of all manner of trash items ranging from tiny bits of plastics to large pieces of construction materials and even the plastic wheel off of a child’s bike as well as one large sneaker!
With the help of some of the Steering Committee members, the collectors sorted their trash items into labeled buckets which helps us report the collected items to the Ocean Conservancy. Then the Conservancy adds this data to its database of trash collected around the world and provides guidance to world leaders about the impact of trash items on the world’s bodies of water.
Here are some highlights of what was collected during this Shoreline Sweep. The removal of these items prevents them from breaking down over time into micro and nano plastic particles that will pollute our drinking water and foods).
630 Small Plastic Pieces
309 Tiny Plastic Pieces (the size of a quarter or smaller)
130 Food Wrapper Pieces
102 Tobacco Products (cigar tips, lighters, wrappers)
55 Cigarette Butts (which contain plastics in their filters)
82 Plastic Bottle Caps
22 Pieces of Construction Materials
Thanks to these neighbors our shared environment was cleaner than before they did their sweep. Yet, the removal of plastics and other trash items is an ongoing effort, since these items continue to arrive on our shores. That is why all Hanford Bay neighbors are Baykeepers when they are at the beach.
Below are some photos from this Shoreline Sweep. Starting with the first photo, click on each photo so that you can advance to the next one. Continue doing this until you have viewed all of the photos.
