This is Curtis Cove, Biddeford, Maine:
It's at the end of a long, winding, wonderful seashore drive that wends past a lazy river, wide-open marshlands, and beautiful homes.
Curtis Cove should be a little slice of heaven. An untouched secret shore with rocky headlands at its front, a salt marsh & tidal estuary at its rear. A protected habitat owned by the
Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. But sadly, it's a huge collection spot for ocean-borne garbage. After a storm, it's a dump. (For more detailed info on what makes Curtis Cove so special -- and the threats it faces -- please see
this link.)
Since January 1, 2012, I've been visiting the cove weekly to scour the same 150-foot stretch of beach for what's come in. The results have been gobsmacking.
This 1325 feet of fishing rope (757 individual pieces) washed in between
February 29 and
May 17. The amount of rope (and of feet) have nearly quadrupled since then. More comes every week.
But far beyond just rope is the assortment of other debris, almost all plastic. A few examples:
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| February 29, 2012 |
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| March 13, 2012 |
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| March 30, 2012 |
Since February 29 (when I finally got down to a clean "baseline" from which to work), I've collected nearly
12,000 pieces of washed-in garbage! (This after the
15221 pieces I collected in 2010-2012 from Bayview beach, Saco.) About 75% comes directly from the lobster fishing industry. (Other pieces, like the many bits of coffee cup lids, speak at least anecdotally to early-morning boating.) Here is a breakdown of what I've been finding week to week:
***img pending***
And below is a set of links to individual "Collection Reports" cataloging what I've found each week, as well as weather conditions and things of interest to note about the beach for that week. I'm making this information and data available freely for any and all to use. All I ask is credit for the data and the photographs.
Curtis Cove Roundup (brief recap of first half of year)
July 23, 2012
July 27, 2012
August 3, 2012
August 8, 2012
August 15, 2012
August 22, 2012
August 31, 2012
September 6, 2012
September 13, 2012
September 20, 2012
September 27, 2012
October 6, 2012
October 11, 2012
October 19, 2012
October 26, 2012
November 2, 2012
November 10, 2012
November 25, 2012
December 4, 2012
December 11, 2012
December 15, 2012
