Lea, Logan, Kai, and Maya, our Hawaiʻi Storm Patrol team, are going on a beach day! While enjoying all that Hawai’i has to offer, they know that everyone has a role in caring for the places we visit. Their perfect beach day is about clear water, sunshine, and the time spent outdoors with friends, but they also know it means making responsible choices to help protect our beaches and oceans for generations to come.
Follow along with Lea, Logan, Kai, and Maya for some ocean-friendly tips for before, during, and after their beach day.
Before heading out on their adventure, Lea made sure to pack their beach day supplies with a purpose. She wrote down a list of all their belongings to make packing up a breeze and added a trash bag along with their towels, sunscreen, and snorkels to make sure that their trash has a place to go. “Being prepared helps ensure that nothing gets left behind!” she said once she was finished.
Next, Kai made a yummy lunch for him and his friends. He prepared four reusable bento boxes with spam fried rice and made sure to fill everyone’s reusable water bottles to the brim. As he placed the lunches, along with some reusable utensils, into a canvas tote bag, he exclaimed, “The 10 most common items found littered on beaches are food wrappers, cigarette butts, plastic bottles, bottle caps, straws and stirrers, plastic cups and plates, plastic grocery bags, takeout containers, plastic lids, and other plastic bags. We don’t want single-use products to ruin our beach day. Making meaningful swaps with reusable alternatives is the way to go!”.
Soon, the friends were at the beach, splashing away in the cool, blue water and enjoying the sunshine. When it was time for lunch, they all sat together on beach towels and shared the food that Kai had made. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew away Logan’s napkin and he chased it down the beach. “Be careful of the wind!” he said when he finally retrieved it. “We need to keep our items secure. Lightweight items, like napkins, food wrappers, and bags, can easily blow away and pollute the ocean.”
After a long day of fun in the sun, the friends were ready to head home. “Let’s make sure to practice ‘pack it in, pack it out’!” Maya exclaimed, as the friends packed up all their belongings. She carefully checked their space on the sand, collecting all their trash and the litter they had found on the beach and bringing it over to the nearby trash can. She noticed that the trash can was full, so she placed the trash into the trash bag that Lea had packed instead and decided to throw it away at home. She knew that it was important to avoid adding to the overflow of trash to prevent items from falling out or getting swept away.
The Hawaiʻi Storm Patrol team knows that every beach day offers an opportunity to mālama ʻāina (protect our land) and mālama i ka wai (protect our water). By making thoughtful choices before, during, and after our time outdoors, we help reduce pollution and protect Hawaiʻi’s coastlines. Leave each place as clean as you found it, or even cleaner.
Source: Encounter Edu