Lethbridge nationally recognized as Clean Shoreline Community

“This is a really symbolic designation representing the hard work of our community and all of the efforts to maintain our waterway and prevent any garbage or pollution from reaching oceans,” he said.

“We know litter is a global problem facing all different types of waterways and natural areas, so it’s really nice to see this designation and recognition at a national level. I think it really speaks to the strength of our programs and the commitment of our volunteer team,” _{– Curtis Goodman}

Goodman said the honour is the culmination of 12 years of hard work, referring to the annual Coulee Clean-Up.

“We know that there has been well over 8000 people that have taken part in the program and we could not do it without their support,” he added.

“It doesn’t necessarily take a conservation event in order for us to manage our garbage and our waste. Sometimes it’s as simple as auditing our own backyard…if we can all take daily steps to mind our mess and make sure that garbage and recycling gets to where it belongs we would be amazed at how little will enter the river valley, and I think that’s a net benefit to everybody, especially our wildlife.”

Wednesday morning’s announcement was fitting, as it is World Environment Day. Goodman said Lethbridge now joins four other communities to receive the designation, which include Vancouver, West Vancouver, Calgary and Hamilton.

He added that cleaning up our shorelines starts right at the front doorstep.

“Recognizing that our shorelines are all connected…we need to recognize that our gutter system connects into storm drains, and that connects us to our waterways,” he said.

“When we say that our shoreline starts at our front door, that’s a real fact and so if you are cleaning up your yard, if you’re looking after the gutter in front of your home, you’re participating in a shoreline clean-up and that does make a big difference because it prevents that litter from reaching our waterways.”

CIGARETTE BUTTS

When speaking to media outside the Helen Schuler Nature Centre Wednesday, Goodman touched on the discarding of cigarette butts.

“With shoreline clean-up, it really is about tracking the data and recognizing that that (cigarette butts) is Lethbridge’s number one problem, which is also consistent with the nation’s statistics,” he said.

“So, with that information we can go forward, and we can start to strategize – how do we overcome this issue? What type of awareness can we raise about the fact that cigarette butts are litter and should be disposed of properly?”

He said that cigarette butts are not bio-degradable and pose a “great health risk” to wildlife if they are ingested.

“We’re finding more and more evidence that sea life is subject to ingesting these because you can imagine a cigarette butt in nature, even for six months, starts to look a lot different and may appear as food to wildlife,” he said.

“If we can raise awareness about the issues that that impacts on wildlife and natural spaces, then we can link that back to the personal behaviour (and) hopefully those that are carelessly disposing of their butts will think twice and carry a portable ashtray with them.”

As part of Environment Week activities, the Nature Centre is hosting a shoreline clean-up Wednesday night, June 5 at 6:00 p.m.

“By shining the spotlight here on Lethbridge, it galvanizes our volunteer team to say, ‘I’m part of something much bigger’, and there’s a certain amount of pride that we can take in that and hopefully we’ll get more and more residents out participating in these types of clean-ups,” _{– Curtis Goodman}

“I find that the more you participate in them (shoreline clean-ups), the more aware you are of your relationship with garbage and over time, if we can have every resident take part in a clean-up, they may think twice before they carelessly discard things.”

Goodman added that there’s a thought that ‘garbage begets garbage’.

“When we leave garbage in natural spaces, people have a higher propensity to add to that garbage, whereas when there’s a clear, clean space, they’re less likely to carelessly discard garbage there.”

by Justin Goulet

Lethbridge nationally recognized as Clean Shoreline Community

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