Gasparilla is a party in Tampa Bay that occurs every year. Hundreds of people parade down the channel in boats and throw beads to parade-watchers that crowd the shores. Often the beads don't make it to the shore, and land in the water, where they sink to the bottom and can stay for years. We found beads that were brand new from the 2019 Gasparilla parade, and beads that were covered in marine life that could have been sitting under the water for years.
There are still tons of beads that need to be pulled from the Channel, we intend to go back and continue removing the beads so we can show the city how much damage that part of the festivities does to our waterways.
Hard drive, tire, thousands of plastic bead necklaces!
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Tikkun HaYam partnered with the Florida Aquarium, Green Gasparilla, Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful, and the Tampa Police department to put on this event. We also had over 20 land volunteers cleaning up the shoreline as well. All total, including marine and land debris, we pulled 273 pounds of trash.
From the My Ocean Community
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