Kodiak’s Coast Guard Auxiliary Holds Event to Clean Local Beaches

The Coast Guard Auxiliary in Kodiak is hosted a beach clean up event on Saturday, called Coast Walk. They extended an invitation to any willing volunteers to meet them at the Fort Abercrombie State Historical Park parking area at 9:00am. There the Coast Guard Auxiliary coordinated the cleaning efforts and handing out trash bags.

Drew Herman, a member of Kodiak’s Coast Guard Auxiliary thinks this effort and others like it are important because, according to him, “ All year everyday uh that tons of garbage and debris are washed into the oceans and anybody can see the evidence on the beaches here.”

It’s this constant barrage of debris that makes regular beach cleanups necessary in Kodiak. The Coast Guard Auxiliary hoped to get around 50 volunteers to come out Saturday. They wanted to at least clean up the popular coastal areas around Kodiak, such as the mouth of Buskin River, Gibson Cove, and Middle Bay.

For Herman, Coast Walk and other beach clean up events like it aren’t just about picking up trash, but also about preserving the place he calls home.  He says, “I think everybody here in Kodiak takes the garbage on the shoreline pretty personally. For most of us the greatest thing about living on Kodiak is that pristine maritime environment that makes this place different from every place else in the world.”

Those volunteers who turned out for Coast Walk on Saturday were invited to a Potluck and BBQ that the Coast Guard Auxiliary that was held at the Fort Abercrombie Recreation Site pavilion from noon to 2pm.