In the 8 plus years as an outdoor educator, I've developed a close relationship with the beaches and shorelines of The City of Alameda. Located within the San Francisco Bay, this island city is a mostly quiet gem just across the Oakland estuary. It's shores are often the resting place of much of the bay and delta's floating dander and is a good indicator on just what kind of objects are being dumped into our precious watershed at any given time.
Not so long ago, plastic bags, straws and bottle caps littered the shores after storms, and the tid{es brought tell tale evidence of our efforts, or failures,to revive the bay. Recent legislation to limit bag, straw, and bottle cap use have been successful and their presence has dropped noticeably in recent years.
But there's more work to be done. Our regular beach cleanups have uncovered a new object which is quickly taking the lead in being present on our shoreline: shot gun wads.
The sport of duck hunting in the delta involves the use of shotguns which expell a plastic casing along with the shot. This plastic casing flies out with the shot and drops to the ground, or water, and remains in the environment for as long as it takes for plastic to break down. A long, long time. This is a problem as I'm sure we're all familiar with the hazards of plastics to wildlife, plant life and the quality of our water in general. But there is a solution!
Biodegradable wads are available and are in fact being used by a percentage of hunters. We'd like to increase that percentage by drawing awareness to their amount of this plastic which washes ashore on just our tiny island alone. We hope that one day, whether by choice or legislation, that all duck hunting will switch to a more environmentally responsible option. One that is so simple, it's a no brainer. In working with duck hunters, whos efforts already contribute to the preservation of wetlands, we hope that one day, we no longer have to collect these pollutants and can look back to an effort in which everyone can agree, was the right thing to do.
What can you do to help?
If you see them, bring them here! See a wad? Pick it up and drop it in the bin to both clean up the bay and to help illustrate the amount we see washing ashore.
Contact your local law makers and draw their attention to the issue
Tell a friend.
Make a friend. When discussing the issue with sportsman, avoid confrontation and approach it as curiosity. "Have you heard of the biodegradable wads? They're really making an impact on cleaning up the waterways and inviting waterfowl numbers to grow". "Might be a good time to invest in this new product! Biodegradable shotgun wads".
Thanks for helping out, and please spread the word!
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