Help wanted!
Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup set for Sept. 23

Volunteers will be cleaning San Jose Island (St. Jo) during the beach cleanup Saturday, Sept. 23. The Port Aransas Chamber of CommerceTourist Bureau is paying for the Jetty Boat fares with a discount from Fisherman's Wharf. Pre-registration is required for this site, and space is limited.

The 20th annual Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach Fall Cleanup will be from 9 a.m. to noon at 26 sites along the Texas coast.

St. Jo Island and Avenue G at the beach are the two check-in locations in Port Aransas. These sites are two of the 11 located in the Coastal Bend.

Volunteers may contact coordinator Mike Beeler at (361) 749-0425 or (361) 443-9011 (cell) to pre-register for either site.

Check-in at Avenue G and the beach before 9 a.m. to clean Port Aransas/Nueces County beach and the south jetty area.

Check-in starts before 8 a.m. at Fisherman's Wharf, 900 Tarpon St. for the St. Jo location. Volunteers need to be registered, have tickets and be on board before the Jetty Boat leaves at 8 a.m.

The all-volunteer event is coordinated through the Adopt-A-Beach Program of the Texas General Land Office. Additional cleanups are scheduled for the winter and spring.

Volunteers will be given data cards, gloves, pencils and trash bags. They are advised to wear closed-toe shoes, bring sunscreen and plenty of drinking water.

Volunteers here will be treated to an appreciation lunch at Roberts Point Park at noon. The lunch is made possible due to donations from Keep Port Aransas Beautiful, Family Center IGA, Quality Liquors, the Kiwanis Club of Port Aransas, H-EB Food Stores, Coca Cola Bottling, Allied Waste-BFIand the City of Port Aransas.

"In 1986, a small group of Texans picked up trash on Padre Island in the first Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup. Now, this groundbreaking program is being expanded even further to allow Texans to help clean the beach without ever having to leave their homes," announced Jerry Patterson, Commissioner of the Texas GLO.

Texans who are not able to attend can help keep Texas beaches clean by making a tax-deductible donation online. Several different Adopt-ABeach sponsorship levels, ranging from $25 to $25,000, which allows both individuals and corporations to contribute, are available.

"If you can't make it to the beach, you can help from home," Patterson said. "Your donations allow us to raise awareness about marine debris and keep our beaches clean. Every bit helps."

Texas beaches receive large amounts of marine debris due to a convergence of currents in the Gulf of Mexico. Since 1986, more than 340,000 Adopt-A-Beach volunteers have picked up more than 6,400 tons of this debris, some of it originating from as far away as Greece. Volunteers record data on the trash to learn more about the causes of marine debris and to help mitigate pollution along Texas' 367 miles of coastline.

For a complete listing of cleanup sites for the upcoming cleanup, to learn how you can participate, or for additional information on the program, visit www.texasadoptabeach. org, or call 1-877-TX COAST.

The cleanups are held rain or shine.