D'Iberville Middle School came out on October 19th, 2012 to do their part for the Mississippi Gulf Coast. We cleaned up site #2 on the North side of Deer Island, where the class hopped to it and wasted no time before sweeping the island for debris!
This group was very hard working and really took the marine debris problem to heart, picking up even the smallest pieces of trash from the wrack line! The group is pictured below, hard at work and ready to take a fine tooth comb to the shoreline.
We found a lot of mystery metal pieces with oysters growing on them, each piece weighed ~ 5-10 lbs! A growing issue within the marine debris problem is the transportation of invasive fouling species on pieces of debris from one place to another. Scientists have nicknames these fouling species "hitch-hikers."
Along with debris, the students found many different types of shells and bones from local species. There's nothing better than seeing the curiosity in a student when they pick up bones on the beach and ask where it came from, how it died and why it's important =) This group was particularly inquisitive, I see many scientists in the making!
Some unusual objects that we found include a deeply buried steel rope from a large ship, a couple pairs of shoes and diapers. The young lady pictured below, tried to dig out the large rope with her own two hands, now that's dedication =)
I want to thank the D'Iberville Middle School class for participating in the Mississippi Marine Debris Removal & Prevention Project and for doing such a great job! We collected a total of 348.04 lbs that day! I hope that you all take the enthusiasm and passion you had during this project and pass it on to others in your community. Coastal stewardship can be contagious, so spread the word!
Thanks again guys, you are a great group of kids and I had a great time on our trip =)
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