We have held Coastal Cleanup in the community since 2000, as part of an international effort organized by The Ocean Conservancy. Each fall schools, groups and citizens come together to clean up our beaches. Beach by beach we gather information on how much trash was found, and what kinds of trash we collected.

Las Conchas and Estero Morúa Beach Cleanup 2009
In the fall of 2009, members of the Las Conchas Peninsula community, kids from Club Ecologico, and students in the Marine Awareness and Conservation Society (MACS) at the University of Arizona joined CEDO in a clean-up of the Las Conchas Beach Front and areas of Estero Morua. Approximately seven miles of beach front were covered in three hours by volunteers.

In the end, a total of 23 bags of trash were collected. Specific trash items have been divided by the Ocean Conservancy into different categories, related to causal activity. Figure 1 below shows the causal activity analysis totals for all trash collected.

As can be seen, the majority of trash results from recreational activities, but a solid third results from ocean activities. These results reflect the main industries of Puerto Peñasco: tourism and fishing.

Las Conchas:
In Las Conchas, 18 bags were collected in total. The tables below show the types of trash found as a representative sample. This reflects the trash from three of the 18 bags collected in the area.

Table 1:  Shoreline and Recreational Activities

Table  2: Ocean/Waterway Activities

Table 3: Medical/Personal Hygiene

Table 4: Dumping Activities and Final Total

Most common items found were pieces of rope (14.06%), caps and lids (17.00%), plastic beverage bottles (13.91%), and bags (7.26%).

Figure 2 belows show the categories of trash collected in Las Conchas.

These items reflect the common use of this beach front: recreation. Pieces of rope/fishing line indicate the destruction of these fishing use items offshore, and that they are being washed ashore here.

Estero Morua:
On the stretch of beach near the restaurant El Barco, 12 people collected five bags of trash over a distance of approximately one mile. The most common items collected here were pieces of Styrofoam (20.57%), pieces of plastic (10.94%), glass bottles (23.44%), and caps and lids (6.25%).

Figure 3 below shows the categories of trash collected near El Barco.

The high amount of Styrofoam found likely results from the oyster farms located in Estero Morua, which use pieces of Styrofoam to keep the oyster boxes afloat. The high percentage of pieces found indicates that an alternate floatation device should be investigated. The other common items are from recreational use, as El Barco is a common place for Puerto Peñasco residents and tourists to visit.

This (relatively) small amount of trash reflects positively on the Las Conchas community, showing their commitment to keeping a beautiful and clean beach. While speaking with participants, it became evident that as they walk the beach, neighbors are regularly picking up trash that they find, helping to maintain this beach clean.