Alabama Coastal Cleanup returns to Mobile, Baldwin counties Sept. 19: How to get involved

The state’s largest single-day volunteer event is back! The 39th Annual Alabama Coastal Cleanup will take place Saturday, Sept. 19, from 8AM until noon, with volunteers needed across 33 cleanup zones in Mobile, Baldwin and Escambia counties.

What to expect at Alabama Coastal Cleanup

The cleanup is coordinated by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ (ADCNR) State Lands Division and Alabama People Against a Littered State (ALPALS), and it’s part of the larger International Coastal Cleanup, a worldwide push to clear marine debris from coastal waters.

Zone coordinators will hand out:

• trash grabbers
• bags
• gloves
• other necessary supplies

A limited number of t-shirts, scout badges and window decals will be available first come, first served.

Plastic bottles and aluminum cans collected during the event will be recycled, and volunteers will log the types of debris found — data that helps researchers track the causes of marine debris over time.

Coastal Cleanup by the numbers

Since the cleanup launched in 1987, it’s added up.

• 115,000+ volunteers have taken part
• 900 tons of marine debris removed from beaches, roadways, bayous and backwaters
• 33 cleanup zones across 3 counties this year

A community effort

This year’s title sponsor is the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, with support from dozens of additional sponsors and volunteer organizations including:

• Alabama Power
• Flora-Bama
• The Mobile Bay National Estuary Program
• Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

“This annual event is a testament to what communities can accomplish when they come together to take care for the places they love.”

Chris Blankenship, ADCNR Commissioner

Volunteers can find zone info, start times and safety tips at AlabamaCoastalCleanup.com or by calling (251) 621-1216.