40 TYBEE BEACHCOMBER | AUG 2019
Adopt-A Program
By Robyn Rosner
Did anyone find themselves particularly motivated after reading last month’s Beachcomber, Talking Trash on Tybee? Looking for a way you can also
help make a difference? The City has the perfect program for you, the Adopt-A Program! Forget about adopting that ferret from the Humane Society,
adopt an area on Tybee instead! Seriously though, if you were really planning on adopting a dog or cat please still do so, they do need homes, but
adoption shouldn’t be limited to fellow creatures. There are areas of Tybee that also need some TLC.
Speaking of fellow creatures, for those who haven’t been keeping up with this year’s Sea Turtle Season, Georgia has seen record breaking numbers of
Loggerhead Sea Turtle nests, with over a hundred more nests than the past records. Sea Turtle Season continues through October, and as Loggerheads
are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, now is a more crucial time than ever to make sure our island does not have litter floating
and blowing around. Of course, sea turtles are only one of the many reasons to keep Tybee tidy and this does not limit us to only picking up litter on the
beach. Our island is not that big and trash left on the sidewalk or road will find its way to the marsh or beach if we don’t account for it.
At the start of 2019, the City initiated the Adopt-A Program, where volunteers adopt an area on Tybee that they help to keep clean. The Program first
started with support from the Beach Taskforce, then developed further with the help of Keep Golden Isles Beautiful, sharing information from their Adopt-
A-Highway Program, eventually taking on its own Tybee transformation into the Adopt-A Program.
Halfway through the first year of the Adopt-A Program, there have been a total of 137 Pickups, where 1,299 participants have spent 679 hours picking
up 667 buckets of litter and 39,161 cigarette butts. There are currently 31 adopted areas, and even though Tybee may not be the largest of islands, there
are still plenty of areas that need to be adopted. Some areas up for adoption include Memorial Park, Tybrisa Street, parking lots on the south end, and
different sections of Butler Avenue. The map of all the areas currently adopted is on the City’s website, www.cityoftybee.org, accessible under ‘Services’
in the top menu bar on the homepage and then by clicking the second to last option, ‘Adopt-an-Area Program.’
Even though the program started in January of 2019, anyone is able to become a participant at any time throughout the year committing to the monthly
pickups for the months remaining in that year. Adoptable areas could be a beach, beach crossover, marsh, park, road, bike path or any other area on the
island you would like to keep clean! The City hopes to keep all types of areas on Tybee clean and would like any group, organization, or individual that
wants to help keep Tybee tidy to participate! If you are interested in being a participant in the City’s Adopt-A Program and have an area you would like
to adopt please email rrosner@cityoftybee.org.
/www.cityoftybee.org
link