K9 in Top 10

It was a little sad for me to see that pet waste is very dangerous to a beach's health. Some may say "that should be obvious," but unfortunately I know there is also human waste and many forms of wildlife waste on our beaches. So I thought a healthy, vaccinated dog's waste wouldn't be much of a problem in the whole scheme of things.

But the Surfrider Foundation provided our volunteers with "10 ways to help our oceans, waves and beaches," and picking up after your pet was #1 on the list.

Therefore, our team went to Bay County's new "Dog Beach" for a cleanup Thursday. Happily, they only found one instance of waste in the sand, and one in the parking lot. That's not bad when you consider how much human waste is on our beaches too (of course they found hundreds and hundreds of cigarette butts at this public beach, which is the #1 litter component found on any beach and in any public space in America.)

PLEASE pick up after your pet wherever you go, especially at our new dog-friendly beach. Thanks as always to the Bay Families with Dogs for making Dog Beach happen.

P.S. The students were so thrilled when the PCB Police Beach Patrol found them at the far end of the beach, away from their normal Spring Break hot-spot, and reported that they were sorely missed back on Thomas Dr. It's amazing what 30 people can do in a morning to a trashed beach!

Press On!

(Please click images to go to media websites... there are videos on all three sites, including the News Herald. I do not know how long these links will be active)

Every community effort is greatly enhanced when the message is spread by the media. The student volunteers and I are very grateful for the response we received this week from the local Bay County Media. Thank you to all the journalists who did a great job spreading our story!

P.S. We did get a great plug for Royal American Hospitality on the live morning show on channel 7 this morning, but we didn't get them thanked in any of the other articles or interviews. Without Royal American Hospitality housing and feeding our volunteers, this effort would not have happened! Thank you again RAH!

P.P.S. The NewsHerald said I was a "marketing consultant for the TDC..." not quite. I'm a marketing consultant, and I am on the TDC marketing committee. But hey, Mr. Rowe, if you read this... maybe it's not a bad idea for me to become a marketing consultant for the TDC. ;c)

Pitching In

The student volunteers quickly realized we (Bay County) were not recycling this beach trash (most of it easily recycled), and so that put a new twist on our cleanup.

Cleanup and recycle. What a concept.

A new local company, Curbside Recycling Service, came to the rescue. They donated two large boxes of recycling bags for the student volunteers to separate and recycle. They have a big opportunity to build a great business here in Bay County. Call Ricky at 850-271-9328 for more information.

The TDC met today, and I asked them to realize that college students can visit our beach, pick up trash for a day and quickly determine our first step needs to be prevention. More cans (at the entrances), trash bags for those who do not bring their own to the beach, and recycle bins / dumpsters at strategic locations.

Day One

Well, one thing's for sure... our volunteers won't get bored.

And here are a few of them getting ready to Keep The Beach Clean!

Welcome to Panama City Beach, Spring Break 2008!

Panama City Beach will host over 50 college students this Spring Break who are volunteering to remove trash from the beaches of Bay county. The first group of students will arrive March 8, and clean the beaches through March 22. One group will come in the first weekend in April to do a final cleanup.

Four major universities, through the coordination of Break Away, will send students to spend their alternative spring breaks on the white sands of the World's Most Beautiful Beaches. Instead of partying, these alternative breakers will be picking up litter, measuring the amount of trash and educating the community and their fellow college students about the importance of keeping the beach clean.

The four participating universities are Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, Louisiana State University and Florida State University. (FSU is still in the process of getting approval, but we're pretty sure they're coming.)

The corporate sponsor who will house and feed the students is Royal American Hospitality, a resort and hotel management company. The Surfrider Foundation will provide educational materials.

Thousands of college students arrive every year to play at the most popular U.S. Spring Break destination, but many spring breakers have proven to leave their scruples back home and choose to trash the beach (along with their brain cells and reputations). This first annual "Keep The Beach Clean Spring Break 2008" will introduce a new way of thinking for the average spring breaker. In addition to helping clean up the spring break trash problem, it is also intended to clean up the image that these college students leave on the community each year.

For more information, please contact Kirk Lancaster at 404-429-5386, or info@KeepTheBeachClean.com

Goals of the program:

1. Educate student volunteers about the importance of fighting beach and ocean/gulf pollution.
2. Have the student volunteers spread the information they learn.
3. Inspire the traditional spring breaker not to leave trash on the beaches.
4. Prove to the community / world that many college students care about their communities and environment.
5. Prove to the "anti-spring break" citizens of Bay County that they can quit complaining and actually do something about the problems that certain tourist segments bring to our beautiful beaches.

Program Points:

1. Students will be cleaning the beaches Monday through Friday, March 8 - 22. One last group will come in the weekend of April 4-6 to do a final spring break cleanup and trash analysis.
2. KeepTheBeachClean.com is the organizing sponsor.
3. Royal American Hospitality is the corporate sponsor.
4. Surfrider Foundation is providing educational support.
5. Break Away (http://www.alternativebreaks.org/) is the coordinating sponsor

Thanks to PanamaCityBeach.com for helping us spread the word to students.

Spring Break Cleanliness

Spring Break is a big issue around here, and for a good reason. There is money to be made, but many of the breakers give the area a bad reputation. The media and mass public feed on the crimes and inconsideration of others, and our students give them plenty to feed on.

It has been said by many that the bad stuff is isolated, and the shows such as Court TV's "Ocean Force" had difficulty finding juicy sins in 2007. But you can't hide from the fact that they completely TRASH the beach.

We might not be able to control their actions, but thanks to a college-serving non-profit called Break Away, we will be getting at least 50 college students from Appalachian State, East Carolina and Florida State universities to do nothing but pick up trash and help spread the word of keeping the beach clean.

We have the main sponsor on board, but I have some really neat ideas about how other sponsors could jump in, help keep the beach clean, and meet some new potential customers in the process. Please email info@KeepTheBeachClean.com with your contact info, and I'll email to set up an appointment.

With my own ears...

At a TDC Bed Tax Committee meeting, I heard the Mayor of Panama City Beach, Ms. Gayle Oberst and County Commission Chairman Mike Nelson say that the dirty beaches (and lack of lifeguards) were at the top of the list of complaints their offices received. TDC Chairman Andy Phillips said he is on the beach often, and admits that there is a trash problem.

These are three very important leaders in the tourism industry, so it was good to hear it with my ears instead of just seeing it with my eyes (and camera).

BIG changes are needed in the philosophy and processes of how Bay County TOURIST TAX DOLLARS are spent to Keep the Beach Clean! What kind of big changes?

WARNING: SOMETHING YOU'VE HEARD FROM ME OVER AND OVER AGAIN AND WILL HEAR FROM ME OVER AND OVER AGAIN IS ABOUT TO BE WRITTEN:

1. strictly enforce litter laws

2. get people on the beach instead of machines to clean it up

3. provide trash bags at public beach accesses and hotels / condos

If you disagree with this, please send me an email and let me know why... Kirk@KirkLancaster.com