Wild New Jersey - Human Nature by Lynda Hester D'Orio. Clean Ocean Action's 1998 Beach Sweeps

Fall Beach Sweeps
Comcast Employees Volunteer for Clean Ocean Action Beach Sweeps
by Lynda Hester D’Orio
October 26th, 1998

On Saturday, October 24th, thousands of volunteers rolled up their sleeves, put on their work gloves and hit the beaches along the entire Jersey shore to clean up the beaches.

Volunteers of all ages came to assist with Clean Ocean Action’s one day beach clean up and to plant dune grass. This is the 14th year that Clean Ocean Action has organized this event and this year nearly 4,000 dedicated volunteers each donated 4 hours of their time to collect nearly a quarter million items from the beaches.

Thanks to the efforts of Comcast's Public & Government Relations department in organizing the event, approximately 50 Comcast volunteers donated their time to help with this great cause. Our Comcast volunteers all met up at Sandy Hook, Gateway National Recreational Area. Sandy Hook includes 6 miles of ocean beaches, salt marshes, the waters of Sandy Hook Bay and the historic sites of Fort Hancock. After some hospitality, we all got our directions on filling out our forms for C.O.A. statistical research and hopped a bus to Plumb Island.

From 9:00AM to Noon, we all set out in pairs to collect garbage and recyclable materials and mark our finds on forms for C.O.A. to gather data on the items we bagged. The Park Rangers then loaded our bags in a garbage scow to remove them. It wasn’t a pretty sight, seeing all the refuse that was left or that washed up on the island.

How anyone can destroy this beautiful coastal area is beyond me, but it was uplifting and rewarding to see the volunteers vigorously go to town and clean up the environment on this National “Make a Difference Day”. When you do this work to repair the damage caused to the habitat of plants and animals, it inspires participants to research which legislators and programs are working towards conservation, and which are not.

After the clean up and some speeches at the meeting point in the parking lot, my friend and I took a quick trip up the road to visit Sandy Hook Lighthouse and Fort Hancock. Sandy Hook Lighthouse is the oldest lighthouse in the country, it has been operational since 1764 and is currently maintained by the Sandy Hook Coast Guard and kept on 24 hours a day.

It’s also interesting to roam the grounds of Fort Hancock. It was occupied by British and Loyalist troops during the Revolutionary War. In 1890, the first of many concrete gun batteries was built at Sandy Hook. In 1895, the U.S. Army established Fort Hancock to man these guns and protect New York Harbor shipping channels from attack by sea.

Fort Hancock was deactivated in 1974, but the many of the buildings and fort structures are there to tour. Now the buildings house the Coast Guard and non-profit educational and environmental groups.

In fact, New Jersey Audubon is relocating their Owl Haven Nature Center to Sandy Hook and will immediately start programs on conservation, education and research projects in early 1999. Expect outdoor classroom education and a charter school for environmental projects. The new center will be located in Officer’s Row at Fort Hancock, at the north end of the Hook.

It will take time and money to clean up the site and refurbish it for it’s new mission. If you are interested in helping with this project, or donating money or materials, you can call NJ Audubon at (908) 204-8998.

More than 2 million people visit Gateway National Recreation Area each year and the Park is open from sunrise to sunset. Sandy Hook is home to several unique habitats for wildlife and is one of the country’s premiere birding environments, (over 300 species have been spotted here). It’s also a beautiful beach area and a great day trip for a picnic, hiking or just relaxing.

If you would like to visit Gateway National Recreation Area and want information on their programs, tours or other information, call the Superintendent of the Sandy Hook Park Service at (908) 872-5970 or visit their website at www.nps.gov/gate.