The mission of the Virginia Plastic Pollution Prevention Network (VPPPN) is to promote and facilitate coordination, collaboration, and communication among groups working to reduce plastic pollution throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. | |
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July 2024
Welcome to the Virginia Plastic Pollution Prevention Network (VPPPN). The newsletter will continue to come out monthly. Meetings will occur bi-monthly. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, August 20 at 2pm using Google Meets
In this edition:
- No July meeting
- Litter Audit Data Article
- Washing Machine Microfiber filter information
- Boat US Foundations ADV Grant Program
- Va Clean Marine Program Promotes Fishing Line Recycling
- Clean the Bay Day Preliminary Results
- Stafford County, VA Launches and Anti-Litter Campaign
- Provide Input for a Virginia Ocean Plan
- Clean Swell App Improvements
- Reduce Plastic -Plastic Free July
*Note: future meetings will be done using the Google Meets platform. Please email us if you need assistance getting set-up*
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No July Virginia Plastic Pollution Prevention Meeting | |
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Meetings will take place every other month. All future meetings will take place on the Google Meets platform. A special speaker, Tom Tylek from RanMarine will talk about trash interception devices and how they can aide in data collection at the August 20 meeting.
RanMarine Technology is at the forefront of aquatic innovation, dedicated to improving water quality and reducing pollution through advanced, sustainable solutions. Their flagship product, the WasteShark, is an autonomous water surface drone designed to collect floating debris, plastic waste, and biomass from various water environments, including marinas, ports, canals, and harbors.
Tom oversees sales and business development in the US for RanMarine Technology, focusing on introducing their cutting-edge technology to organizations and government bodies. He presents the WasteShark as a viable solution for removing floating debris and plastic from waterways.
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Litter Audit Data Could Drive More
Litigation and Policy
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A recent analysis said Coca-Cola was the source of 11% of all branded plastic among pollution surveyed globally. This type of data is part of growing transparency around packaging outcomes. Study authors said that a lack of clarity around plastic pollution’s sources and producers is a barrier to addressing the issue. | |
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Laundry is a Major Source of Microfiber Pollution
Solution=Washing Machine Microfiber Filters
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Microplastics pose a significant threat to our health and our oceans. Once they enter the environment, they are nearly impossible to remove. Plastic microfibers derived from textiles like clothing are one of the most commonly found types of microplastics in the environment.
Research has indicated that washing clothes is a major contributor to microplastic pollution. However, the good news is that there are washing machine filtration technologies available that can capture up to 90% of microfibers that would otherwise escape into our waterways.
Access, 'Fibers to Filters: A Toolkit for Microfiber Solutions,' using the button here. This is a collaborative effort by Ocean Conservancy, The 5 Gyres Institute, and The Nature Conservancy. This toolkit demonstrates how microfiber filtration in washing machines can significantly curb microplastic pollution. It also provides insights into solutions that can aid in advocating for local or regional changes through legislative action.
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Boat US Foundation’s ADV Grant Program | |
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Through the NOAA’s Marine Debris Program, the BoatUS Foundation is administering a national competitive grant program for the removal of abandoned and derelict vessels (ADVs) in U.S. coastal waterways, the Great Lakes, and Freely Associated States. The grant is now live and open to the public and the Foundation is seeking qualified/experienced organizations, and/or companies to submit ADV-removal projects for funding consideration.
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Virginia Clean Marina Program Promotes Fishing Line Recycling | |
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The Virginia Clean Marina Program has partnered with the City of Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation Department, Lynnhaven River Now, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, and Virginia Sea Grant to recycle used fishing line in Virginia.
Fishing line is recycled by Berkley. They currently accept monofilament, braided, and fluorocarbon line.
Most plastic fishing line takes about 600 years to decompose. However, fluorocarbon lines takes about 4,000 years!
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Clean The Bay Day was a Success! | |
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About 3,688 volunteers and more than 60 CBF partners gathered at more than 200 sites across Virginia on Saturday, June 1, 2024. While final results are still pending, so far more than 82,200 pounds of debris were removed from beaches, parks, shorelines, streams, rivers, and lakes.
While litter is easily prevented and can be picked up by anyone on any given morning, tackling the major unseen threats to the Bay watershed—like habitat loss, sediment, and nutrient pollution—require broad and focused support. Clean the Bay Day often performs as a gateway program through which children and adults alike embrace environmental stewardship of their waterways. We hope you will help us in our mission to save the Bay by learning more about the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint, plan to restore and protect the Bay and its rivers and streams.
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Stafford County, Virginia
launches an anti-litter campaign
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This “broken” turtle is the official logo of PLEA! PLEA (Plastic Litter Education Advocates) is a newly formed non-profit registered in Falmouth, Virginia to eradicate plastic litter. Specifically, PLEA’s mission is to teach the public and students (P-K through 12+) about the hazards of [loose] plastic litter, and the tragedy that all loose litter eventually makes its way to the nearest river/bay/ocean. PLEA accomplishes this by delivering lesson plans in the classroom (be it indoor or outdoor), and by media messages.The plastic litter issue is especially poignant in the coastal states, and Virginia where a major river runs through every major city, and empties in the Chesapeake Bay. | | |
Opportunity to Provide Input for a Virginia Ocean Plan | |
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There is an opportunity for partners, stakeholders and the public to provide input to help shape a Virginia Ocean Plan (for the shores of Virginia out to the 200 nautical mile limit of the Exclusive Economic Zone - see www.deq.virginia.gov/vaoceanplan).
The Virginia CZM Program will be holding an evening Community Open Forum on August 15 in Virginia Beach at the Virginia Aquarium. Clean Virginia Waterways staff will be participating and it would be great to see you there! We especially encourage Virginians to share their stories of how they connect to Virginia's coast and ocean waters. In addition to the forum, below is the list of the various ways to provide input and these stories:
- Virtually during our on-line forum on September 5. More details to be posted.
- Via a voicemail or text message to (804) 420-8457
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Send us a picture with a caption that describes your connection to the coast and ocean waters! We may use your picture in the future and will make sure to contact you before doing so. You can send pictures via text to (804) 420-8457 or via email to virginiaoceanplan@gmail.com
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The Clean Swell App is BetterThen Ever | |
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Earlier this month, the updated Ocean Conservancy’s Clean Swell® app was launched. It now has an option for trash trap users to record their data. The International Trash Trap Network (ITTN) is thrilled to announce this as it is the result of a lot of behind-the-scenes discussions between staff, volunteers, network members and app developers!
Where can I download Clean Swell®?
Download Clean Swell® for free via the Apple App Store or Google Play
How do I use Clean Swell®?
The Clean Swell® app is best used in combination with the ITTN Data Collection Protocols, available to download from our website linked below.
To help you get to grips with the new app, please view our demonstration video: http://youtu.be/sMEjWwUiuYs
Can I still use the Data Tapper app?
With the launch of Clean Swell®, we will be discontinuing use of the Data Trapper app for trash trap data reporting on July 31st, and beyond this date the app will no longer be functional. Please download and test out Clean Swell® before this date to ensure a smooth transition.
Where will my data go?
All data submitted through the Clean Swell® app will automatically upload into the ICC database. This database is publicly available via Ocean Conservancy’s TIDES app, where you can view and download data reports. They are currently working to upload trash trapping data from previous years to this database, which will also be available soon.
Visit the TIDES app: https://www.coastalcleanupdata.org/
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Reduce Plastic - Tip of the Month
Plastic Free July
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It’s Plastic Free July! Are you up for the challenge?
Plastic Free July is a month where we can step up our efforts to refuse single-use plastics, change habits and influence others to do the same! Plastic Free July is a grassroots effort that began in 2011 and has grown to include 100s of millions of participants in 190 countries.
The website, plasticfreejuly.org offers several pages of tips for reducing plastics at home, work, school, your business, etc. Take the Pesky Plastics Quiz to get a sense of how you are doing on your less-plastic journey. You can take the Plastic Free July challenge and learn from others also trying to change their single-use habits. Check out their resources for posters and videos that can be shared on social media, at home, work or school.
Some of the simple habits that can help reduce your use of single-use plastics include:
- Always bring a reusable shopping bag, no matter what type of shopping you are doing.
- Remember to grab reusable produce bags when heading to the grocery store or farmers market.
- Bring containers with you for your leftovers when you go out to eat.
- Skip single-use coffee cups and lids by bringing your own travel mug.
- Skip the single-use plastic straw and bring your own reusable straw if you need/want to use a straw.
The button below till take you to the calendar that has more great ideas. Skipping single-use plastics during Plastic Free July and beyond will help “turn off the faucet” of plastic pollution. You’ve got this!
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The VPPPN monthly eNewsletter wants
YOUR INPUT!
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If you would like to have your upcoming event (or publication) mentioned in the monthly VPPPN eNewsletter, write a paragraph with the following information, and email it to VirginiaPPPN@gmail.com.
Are you reading a book about plastics, environmental justice, ocean sustainability and health or another related topic? What about a podcast series relevant to plastic pollution or marine debris? We want to know so we can share that information with other VPPPN members!
FORMAT: Submissions to the VPPPN monthly eNewsletter must be sent as a Word or Pages document or as text in an e-mail. Word limit: 150. You can also send us a photo, logo, or flyer as a JPG.
CONTENT: Include the title, time, date and place of the event or program, and a phone number (with area code) or e-mail address of a contact person. State if the program is free or has a fee; has an age requirement or other restrictions; or has a registration deadline or welcomes drop-ins. Also include the name of the group sponsoring the event, and a website (if available) for more information.
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Support the
Virginia Plastic Pollution Prevention Network
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As our network grows, so do our expenses. Please consider a donation to support the VPPPN if you have found it to be valuable to you. We would appreciate your support of $10, $20 or more. Member organizations that donate $100 or more will have the opportunity to add their logo and website link to our website.
We are in the process of reclassifying and are unable to process credit card donations at this time. Please send an email to virginiapppn@gmail.com if you would like to make a donation.
THANK YOU!
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