(Including the Kitchen Sink) By Kathy 



dedicated to the cause. 



Ed Brooks, site coordinator at 

 Wrightsville Beach, said one group 

 of high school volunteers spent more 

 than an hour digging out an enor- 

 mous sheet of plastic that had blown 

 off a nearby construction project. 



At inland Big Sweep cleanup 

 zones, citizens heaved satellite 

 dishes, stoves, refrigerators, sofas, 

 chairs and car parts from muddy 

 creek beds and lake shores. 



Troop after troop of Boy Scouts, 

 Girl Scouts and Brownies flocked to 

 shorelines to pick up debris. 

 Members from church groups, 4-H 

 clubs, environmental alliances, 

 school classes and college organiza- 

 tions deposited can after bottle after 

 plastic bag after cigarette butt into 

 their bags. 



"It was gratifying to see the 

 number of people who came to The 

 Big Sweep and to see their dedica- 

 tion to the cause,' ' says Lundie 

 Spence, Sea Grant's marine educa- 

 tion specialist and the coordinator 

 for The Big Sweep. 



"We feel like we're building a base 

 of awareness about litter, especially 



Photo by C.R. Edgerton 



among young people,' ' she says. 

 ' 'And we hope this awareness even- 

 tually translates to less litter in our 

 waterways.' ' 



In some cases, Big Sweep has 

 already made a difference. Officials 

 from coastal beach communities 

 have installed more beach trash cans 

 and often send out municipal clean- 

 ing crews. 



Some coastal site coordinators are 

 actually beginning to see a decrease 



in the litter amassed during The Big 

 Sweep. 



But that's not the case inland. 



At lakes Jordan, Norman, Wylie, 

 Hickory, James and High Rock, 

 debris— bait containers, beer cans, 

 soft drink bottles and plastic foam 

 pieces — is often as much a part of 

 the scenery as the oaks, pines and 

 maples. 



The natural currents of the Cape 

 Fear, Tar, Dan, Uwharrie and Neuse 

 rivers leave deposits of filthy debris 

 in the curvature of their banks. 



Boating access sites on these 

 waterways are treated as giant trash 

 cans. 



"We definitely have our work cut 

 out for us inland," Spence says. "We 

 need to mount an educational cam- 

 paign among boaters and recrea- 

 tional fishermen. And we need to 

 find a way to get trash receptacles 

 placed at access points." 



Only a few days after Big Sweep 

 '90's completion, Spence and the 

 coordinating committee are already 

 planning for 1991. 



The date will be Sept. 21. 



Be there. ■ 



Big Sweep '90 Organizers 



UNC Sea Grant 



Keep America Beautiful 



N.C. Division of Water Resources 



N.C. Division of Coastal Management 



N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission 



N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation 



Keep North Carolina Clean and 



Beautiful 

 N.C. 4-H 

 N.C. Aquariums 

 Duke Power 



Western North Carolina Development 



Association 

 WGHPiedmont in the Triad 

 WRAL in Raleigh 

 WSOC in Charlotte 

 WLOS in Asheville 

 WWAY in Wilmington 

 WCTI in New Bern 



Big Sweep '90 Contributors 



The N.C. Beer Wholesalers 



Association 

 Miller Brewing 

 Winn-Dixie Inc. 

 Duke Power 



Waste Management Inc. 

 Telecom USA 

 Texasgulf Inc. 

 Weyerhaeuser 

 GLAD Wrap & Bags 

 ALCOA 

 Faber Castell 



The Center for Marine Conservation 

 CP&L 



Highland Press 



The N.C. Wildlife Federation 



The N.C. Wildlife Resources 



Commission 

 Dillard Paper Co. 

 Coleman Envelope and Printing 

 Paper Stock Dealers Inc. 



EDU-PLAY 



Petty Enterprises Inc. 



Precision Printing 



Tom Powell and Associates 



S&S Marine Contractors, Inc. 



Carteret Clean County 



Takeda Chemical Products 



Fiddler's Gallery and Framing 



House of Raeford, Inc. 



D-G Enterprises 



Wake Soil and Water Conservation District 



A Special Thanks to These 

 Coordinators for Making 

 The Big Sweep '90 a Success: 



Rex Peters 

 Nancy Cowal 

 Diane Warrender 

 Nancy Pritchett 

 Jan Manning 

 Caroline Parker 

 Anne Morriss 



Lois Nixon 

 Kay Rogers 

 Linda Ritter 

 Lynne Leonard 

 Lucinda Trew 

 Pat Brinkley 

 Sarah Humphries 



