Litter accumulated in the ocean over the past year is equivalent to if each person on the planet had dumped 700 pieces of trash into the water, according to a recent study published in the journal PLOS ONE.
But while the amount of litter pouring into the oceans seems to be on a steady rise, local waterways have not documented a similar problem.
“Folks are actually doing a better job of picking up after themselves,” said Rose Meadows, the general manager of Ginnie Springs.
Meadows, 53, said Ginnie Springs has been doing a lot to ensure that their grounds remain spotless.
She said the park has signs asking campers and visitors not to pollute, and they have added more trash cans to encourage park guests to clean up.
The park also hands out trash bags to every guest upon arrival, and if a campsite has trash piling up, occupants will be asked by park staff to clean up.
“Folks really enjoy having a place like this for their recreation needs and understand it takes everyone’s help to keep it nice,” Meadows said.
She said the park has employed grounds staff to keep the area clean.
This is a way to ensure guests can enjoy the natural beauty of the the springs, Meadows said.
The park also does river cleanups to remove anything in the water that shouldn’t be there.
But Meadows said they have noticed the springs are not nearly as trashed as they have been in the past.
Ginnie Springs is not the only organization focused on litter removal in local waters.
Current Problems is a nonprofit organization focused on removing trash from waters throughout North Central Florida.
“We just constantly do cleanups,” said Fritti Olson, the executive director of Current Problems.
Olson said it’s hard to tell whether littering has increased within the past year because different locations vary in the amount of litter.
“We try to go to problem areas, so there’s bound to be a lot,” she said.
Current Problems focuses on educating people about the connection between human activity on land and its impact in the waters.
The organization encourages people to volunteer for cleanups.
“Those people will never throw anything on the ground again,” Olson said.
Email aar@currentproblems.org to be added to the volunteer list and receive notices of future projects, cleanups and workdays.
[A version of this story ran on page 1 on 2/19/2015 under the headline “Plastic waste in ocean on the rise, local springs not"]
University of Florida students pass in front of the recycling and trash bins near Weimer Hall on Monday afternoon. Ginnie Springs management is encouraging park visitors to deposit their trash in bins and not litter.
