Patterson invites Texans to exercise their right to access the public beach; cleanup trash.
Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson is urging all Texans to take advantage of their right to access the public beach Saturday, Sept. 22 for the 26th Annual Texas General Land Office Fall Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup. The cleanup will take place at three sites in the Victoria area.
“A right not exercised is a right that will be lost,” Patterson said. “Join us Saturday, Sept. 22 for a fun time and a great cause, exercising your rights and keeping Texas beaches trash-free.”
Volunteers should wear shoes, a hat and sunscreen. Volunteers will be given data cards, gloves, pencils and trash bags. Most sites along the coast conclude the day’s cleanup with cold drinks, hot food and lots of fun.
Volunteers may register on-line at www.TexasAdoptABeach.org or become a fan of the Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach program on Facebook. Texans who can’t make it to the beach but still want to support the effort can make a tax-deductible donation at www.TexasAdoptABeach.org. Sponsorship levels range from $25 to $25,000.
The Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach program began in the fall of 1986, when 2,800 volunteers picked up 124 tons of trash. Since then, it has grown into one of the most successful all-volunteer efforts in the nation. In 26 years, 430,000 Adopt-A-Beach volunteers have picked up more than 8,300 tons of trash from the Texas Gulf Coast.
The data collected from the beach cleanups played an integral part in the passage of MARPOL Annex V, an international treaty that prohibits the dumping of plastics in the world’s oceans. In July of 1991, the International Maritime Organization designated the Gulf of Mexico and the Wider Caribbean as a “special area” where the dumping of trash, with the exception of finely ground food scraps, is prohibited.
Shell Oil Company is the statewide sponsor for the 26th Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach Fall Cleanup. Other sponsors include Apache Corporation, AkzoNobel Surface Chemistry LLC, Cheniere Energy, Halliburton and the Ocean Conservancy.
Local news media sponsors for the cleanup include the following Victoria stations: KAVU-TV ABC 25, KVCT-TV FOX 19, KXTS-TV CBS 41, KMOL-TV NBC 17, and Town Square Media KIXS-FM, KLUB-FM, KTXN-FM, KQVT-FM.
For more information about how you can get involved, call 1-877-TXCOAST or visit our Web site at www.texasadoptabeach.org.
Adopt-A-Beach Fall Cleanup check-in sites in our area:
Magnolia Beach/Indianola – Calhoun County
Check-in: Crabbin’ Bridge
Contact: Rhonda Cummins
361-552-9747
rhonda.cummins@texasadoptabeach.org
King Fisher Beach, Port O’Connor—Calhoun County
Check-in: Pavilion at King Fisher Beach
Contact: Debbie Gayle
361-552-3200 (daytime)
361-983-4647 (evening)
debbie.gayle@texasadoptabeach.org
Austwell Pier—Refugio County
Check-in: Austwell Pier
Contact: Dwight Mutschler
361-286-3762
austwellredfish@texasadoptabeach.org
WHO: About 10,000 Texans who care about Texas beaches
WHAT: 26th Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach Fall Cleanup
WHERE:Three coastal sites in the Victoria area
WHEN: 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, September 22
WHY: To keep Texas beaches clean and healthy
