JERSEY SHORE – Local volunteers are using their kayaking skills to clean Jersey Shore waterways – one paddle stroke and one piece of litter at a time.
Stroke Your Eco, Paddle for the Planet brings people together in the NJ waterways by vessel (kayak, canoe and/or paddle board) to remove any kind a garbage or trash that does not belong.
Stroke Your Eco founder Lynn Brotherston is an avid kayaker and paddle boarder who started the initiative back in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Volunteers jump into their kayaks and paddle through waterways to clean up trash. (Photo courtesy Lynn Brotherston)
“I started it as a meet up group. I was going out by myself and I would see a bunch of garbage. I thought somebody has to do something about this,” Brotherston said. “Then I was posting meet ups online and it just transpired from there. My first clean up I think we had about 20 to 25 people; it was awesome.”
The group ventures into local lakes, rivers, streams, and parks to clean the polluted waterways. Some popular locations include Deal Lake in Asbury Park, Forge Pond in Brick, Lake Shenandoah in Lakewood, and Shark River in Neptune. Brotherston explained how these waterways constantly had trash floating in them.
“It’s littering. It might be a lot of fishermen. It’s also a lot of dumping,” Brotherston said. “Forge Pond for instance, if you’re driving down Route 70, people just chuck their garbage right out their window. If you have a storm, or even a breeze, and the wind is going to push all the garbage into the parking lot area.”
Tires are found in the water more frequently than anyone would like. (Photo courtesy Lynn Brotherston)
“It’s a trickle-down effect. It’s going to go into a sewer system, then come out the other side into our waterways,” Brotherston added.
If you don’t have a kayak or vessel for the water, don’t worry. You can still volunteer with land clean-ups.
“My goal is to collect enough donations to get a truck and a trailer with at least 6 to 10 kayaks. That’s where I want to take this in the next couple of years,” Brotherston said.
Stroke Your Eco, Paddle for the Planet has currently held 82 clean-ups and counting. Over the past three years, they’ve collected over 43,000 lbs. of trash.
“We usually pull about 200 to 300 lbs. of garbage in every clean up. Sometimes more,” Brotherston said. “It’s insane. Especially with the tires and the furniture. If we have a storm, all the furniture from your patio is going right into the water – or garbage bins, you name it. With the tires, people don’t want to bring it to the dump because it costs about $5 per tire. So, they just dump them in the water.”
Volunteers come together to clean local waterways. (Photo courtesy Lynn Brotherston)
Brotherston explained how the organization is now working with townships, NJ Clean Communities, and corporate companies to spread the word about environmentalism. Brotherston shared how in the future she’d like to hold lectures in communities about littering.
“I did a speaking lecture over at Ocean County College a couple months ago. I was so passionate about doing it. I did another one at the Waretown Historical Society,” Brotherston said. “My ultimate goal is to go out and speak to kids about the effects of littering. Maybe even go into classrooms or auditoriums and speak to as many kids as I can.”
Stroke Your Eco, Paddle for the Planet is seeking volunteers for their upcoming clean-ups. Upcoming events can be found on their Facebook page at facebook.com/Strokeyoureco. To learn more or to make a donation, visit their website at strokeyoureco.org.
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