Florida Recap

Thanks to the efforts of 45 committed volunteers, we successfully removed an impressive 49.7 pounds of trash and microplastics from the shoreline of Historic Virginia Key Beach Park. This achievement is truly remarkable and will have a lasting positive effect on our Biscayne Bay ecosystem in Miami, Florida.

These clean-up events are crucial in our ongoing battle against plastic pollution. Every piece of trash and microplastic removed helps protect marine life, preserve the beauty of our coastline, and contribute to the overall health of our environment. The most common item we collected were single use plastics. Items like straws, bottles, utensils, and food wrappers are used for an average of 12 minutes but remain in the environment for centuries. 

In addition to hosting a microplastics cleanup in Miami, our team supported the annual Trash Derby in the Florida Keys. Groups from across the country came together to remove as much debris as possible from the keys in one weekend. United by Blue participated in a scuba cleanup, snorkel cleanup, and mangrove cleanup. We were able to remove over 1,088 pounds of trash from the Keys. Over half of the debris was derelict fishing gear that was left at the bottom of the ocean after the fishing season ended. We removed fishing line tangled around coral and lobster traps with live lobster. The animals and coral were both freed and left to enjoy the beautiful reefs around Key West.