Oyster Bay Harbor cleanup connects kids to community, nature

Disposable forks, plastic wads of skeet shooting shells, and Coca-Cola cans were washed up on the beach at Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park in Oyster Bay — until an army of volunteers showed up Saturday.

The crew was there along the shoreline for the Oyster Bay Harbor Cleanup and Marine Education Expo, a biannual effort centered on cleaning the town’s beaches, providing volunteer opportunities for children, and educating residents about groups focused on protecting the environment. 

Kaia Peterson, 6, wanted to help the Earth, said her mom, Kimberly Peterson, of Massapequa.

“I got two pieces,” Kaia shouted while scaling rocks at the beach, undeterred by the windy morning.

“We talk about it all the time,” Kimberly Peterson said of connecting her daughter to nature, adding that she felt the cleanup was an opportunity to show Kaia how she can make a difference. “I think it’s really important,” she said. 

A few dozen volunteers were there for the start of the cleanup.

Samira Zambrano, 13, of Hempstead, and Isabella Rivera, 24, of Westbury, were with one of the groups that took part. Members of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, a nonprofit mentorship program that connects adult volunteers with children, the two wanted to help improve the community. 

“I already knew a lot of people threw garbage in the ocean and beach, but I didn’t know it was this bad,” Samira said. “But I’m glad we’re out here cleaning it up.” 

A common item found at the cleanup was the splayed-out remnants of skeet shooting shells, said Nadia Brako, a member of the New York Marine Rescue Center in Riverhead.

“It looks like a squid, and birds and sea turtles eat it,” said Brako, who added that the presence of the plastic pieces underscores the need to educate the public on the need to protect marine life.

The center was one of more than a half-dozen groups attending the event — part of an education component that marries volunteerism with further action by linking residents to active coalitions and community groups. 

Volunteers donned windbreakers and boots and used biodegradable bags for the cleanup and had the option to head to two more stops afterward: Stehli Beach in Bayville and Centre Island Beach, according to Sara Covelli, environmental specialist for the town’s Department of Environmental Resources.

After the bags are collected, they’re sent to the town’s solid waste transfer station in Old Bethpage, Covelli said.

In past years, Oyster Bay cleanups have removed 40,000 pounds of debris from the shoreline, the town said. They've occurred since 1993, said town spokesman Brian Nevin.

Oyster Bay Councilwoman Vicki Walsh said the event creates inroads to connecting younger kids with the community.

“We have a lot of volunteers who started when they’re very young and now they’re older, and some of them are even in college, and they come back,” Walsh said. “It’s just a proud feeling when you see all the bags piled up.”

By Joseph Ostapiuk

joseph.ostapiuk@newsday.com@OstapiukJ