Clean The Bay Day
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The Annual Clean the Bay Day will be held June 2017.
On Friday and Saturday, June 3 and 4, 2016, approximately 919 Navy active duty and civilian volunteers from nine installations participated in Clean the Bay Day. Clean the Bay Day is an event to remove harmful litter and debris from the Bay's waters and shore.
In just three hours these volunteers removed roughly 48,830 pounds of harmful debris along more than 72 miles of streams and shoreline. This year, the most common items found were: plastic bottles, plastic bags, cans and cigarette butts.
Thank you to our community for continuing to volunteer in this legacy cleanup event.
See you in June 2017!
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You can continue to save the Bay throughout the year by becoming a better Bay steward at home and work.
- Use natural cleaners--use natural, non-toxic, phosphate-free cleaners for most cleaning tasks. You'll be reducing toxic chemicals in wastewater while saving money.
- Reduce fertilizer use--always get a soil test first to be sure what your lawn requires; use fertilizer sparingly, and only when necessary. Excessive fertilizers contribute to nitrogen and phosphorous overload in rivers and the Bay, which can lead to low oxygen levels and dead zones.
- Only rain in storm drains--allow only rain to go down the storm drain and use a broom nota hose or power blower, to clean debris from decks, patios and driveways. You'll save water, reduce emissions, and curb stormwater runoff.
- Practice Bay friendly car care--take your vehicle to a commercial car wash or wash your car on an unpaved surface with phosphate-free soap so water soaks into the ground, not into the storm drain.
- Reduce rainwater runoff--direct rainwater away from paved surfaces; direct gutter downspouts onto lawn or flower beds, or into a rain barrel.
To learn more, please visit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Chesapeake Bay Program websites.