On Saturday, April 29, 2023, Destin-Fort Walton Beach Tourism and Saltwater Restaurants teamed up to host a community-wide Earth Day Cleanup event. 

• From 8-10am, hundreds of volunteers from local businesses, government agencies, communities, and families came together to clean up trash and debris from six popular beach locations.

With the goal of removing as much litter as possible from local beaches, the cleanup took place at The Boardwalk on Okaloosa Island, The Crab Trap/James Lee Park, The Surf Hut, Norriego Point, Clement Taylor Park, and Henderson Beach State Park. People of all ages participated in the event, working together to preserve the beauty and health of our coastal ecosystem.

Marine debris is a serious issue for our local environment, posing threats to seabirds and coastal marine life. Last year, during the International Coastal Cleanup, volunteers collected 1,000 pounds of garbage and over 8,000 cigarette butts, according to county officials.

Jessica Valek, Coastal Resource Coordinator at Destin-Fort Walton Beach Tourism, emphasized the importance of such events: 

• “The Earth Day Cleanup is a great way to bring the community together and do good for the environment. Removing trash and debris not only protects the environment but also the health of our communities and local wildlife. Although the Earth Day Cleanup is held only once a year, we should treat every day like Earth Day to ensure future generations have a clean and safe home.”

This year’s Earth Day Cleanup featured an exciting new addition: the Keep Florida Beautiful BeBot. This solar-powered beach cleaning robot sifts small pieces of debris from the surface layers of sand, making the cleanup process more efficient and effective. The BeBot was donated to Keep Florida Beautiful by Surfing’s Evolution & Preservation Foundation and was hosted for this event by the Keep Okaloosa Beautiful affiliate.

Around 300 participants gathered at The Boardwalk, with approximately 200 more volunteers spread across the other five locations. Final numbers on all items collected are still being tallied, but the results of the cigarette butt competition are in: 

• Volunteers removed 3,000 cigarette butts, a significant decrease compared to previous years.