Events
The Little Things Oct 2021
The little things can add up. Although this wasn't a sanctioned Better Bay Society (BBS) event, we still make an effort to make a difference. A group of friends (which included BBS members) were kayaking in Fort Desoto park on Sunday. We had trash bags, grabber/reacher tools, and multi tools. Thankfully we did not see much trash on our paddling route, however we Brittany did spot this fishing line and lure which we were able to remove. Not pictured were the 3 white ibises hanging out in the mangroves 10 feet away watching us as we help to clean their habitat.
Feeding Tampa Bay Oct 2021
Feeding Tampa Bay is part of the national Feeding America network which focuses on providing food to nearly 1 million food insecure families in the 10-county area of West Central Florida. Better Bay Society members volunteered their time on this Saturday morning to help sort and box donated food, beverage, and home goods.
If you are interested in helping Feeding Tampa Bay, please go to FeedingTampaBay.org/how-you-can-help
Beach Cleanup near MacDill AFB
This beach not too far from MacDill Air Force Base tends to collect a lot of trash from the water and other guests. This trash mixes with the organic debris and is tedious to remove. What doesn't help is that much of the plastic trash is so weathered that it will break a part as soon it is touched.
Pinellas Trail Trash Clean up August 2021
We have decided to make Pinellas Trail a recurring cleanup. The exact amount of garbage and recycle was not tracked this time, but we collected similarly to last. If you are interested in joining us for these cleanups, pleas reach out to us on Instagram.
Pinellas Trail Trash Clean up July 2021
St. Pete is home to the Pinellas Trail, a 45-mile long bike trail nestled in the county for which it was named and which runs from downtown St Pete to Tarpon Springs. In July, 10 members of the Better Bay Society set forth with buckets and grabbers in hand to do their part in keeping the trail clean.
We chose to use washable and reusable buckets, garden gloves, and grabbers over traditional thin trash bags and rubber or plastic gloves to lessen our environmental impact even more.
With everyone’s help over a 3 hour period, our group cleaned up 75 gallons of garbage and 16 gallons of recycling for a “gross” pick up of 91 gallons! 😮
Little Free Pantry Dec 2020
Have you heard of the Little Free Pantry project? They are free-standing pantries in the community where things can be left for those that are in need. Friends of the Better Bay Society pulled resources together to add to 6 of the pantries in our local area. If you are in the Tampa Bay area; 3 pantries in Gulf Port, 1 in St. Pete, 1 in Pinellas Park, and 1 in South Tampa.
Everyone is struggling in some way right now and this is an avenue to help those in your community that are in need.
If you are in need or are fortunate to give to those that are in need, please visit LittleFreePantry.org to find pantries in your area.
Beach Clean up Nov 2020
After a hurricane Eta hit Florida in Nov 2020, we noticed a lot of trash was washed up on this little beach. Three of us took our morning to clean it up. As we started cleaning, we were surprised about the amount, and we expect much of it was there for some time. A lot of the plastic deteriorated to the point where it would crumple from touching it. This made our work very tedious and slow moving. Unfortunately we were not able to completely remove all the plastic pieces that resided in layers within the detritus. However we were able to make a sizable dent in the three hours we had dedicated.