Volunteers collect over 5,000 pounds of trash off Delaware’s beaches this year

A car exhaust and a bean bag chair were some of the unusual pieces of discarded junk found across Delaware’s shores this year during the state’s annual Coastal Cleanup.

Volunteers removed 5,121 pounds of trash from shorelines, wetlands and waterways last month during the event hosted by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

Environmental regulators say they’re concerned by the thousands of cigarette butts, food wrappers and bottle caps that litter Delaware’s beaches and state parks each year.

“Any waste that gets pulled out of the ocean, out of these waterways, the beaches, affects the marine life and the life on land, as well for animals, as well as that ecosystem,” said Alyssa Imprescia, a community relations coordinator at DNREC.

Around 100 billion plastic beverage containers are sold in the United States each year — much of which ends up in landfills and waterways. Plastic doesn’t decompose and can remain in the environment forever, harming marine ecosystems. Much of it breaks into tiny pieces known as microplastics, which are known to impact animal and human health.

This year, volunteers collected 3,000 more pounds of trash across Delaware’s beaches and state parks than in 2024. However, officials say it’s not clear whether the rise is due to increased littering or a more robust cleanup.

“We are so thankful that we had so many volunteers that worked really hard and were able to remove trash from these areas and make those areas a little bit nicer for everybody,” Imprescia said.

The state has also recorded some positive trends. The number of plastic bags collected from Delaware’s beaches has declined since the state began to ban the items in 2021, Imprescia said. However, she said a direct correlation can’t be proven.

Delaware hikers and fishers who want to make a difference are encouraged to bring disposable bags and rubber gloves on their next excursion to the state’s beaches and parks so they can collect trash along the way. Most importantly, residents are urged to dispose of their trash in the proper receptacles.

“Leave no trace, don’t leave anything behind. Whatever you bring in, you should be taking out. A lot of the resort communities do provide receptacles for these things, including ashtrays,” said Jennifer Pongratz, an environmental scientist with DNREC’s shoreline and waterway management section. “I would say utilizing those areas that are there for the trash to be collected — you should put the trash where it needs to go.”