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Beautifying The Bay

By Alex Pickett on Sat, Aug 18, 2007 at 5:13 pm

The Green Armada Foundation: Two local brothers and a cousin created this nonprofit that strives to rid coastal waterways of trash through volunteer efforts and a specially designed boat.

Greenarmada.org or 800-496-9161.

Keep Pinellas Beautiful: This all-volunteer organization conducts several annual clean-ups throughout Pinellas County as well as Adopt-A-Shore programs.

[email protected] or 727-533-0402.

Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful: Another affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, Inc.

Khcbonline.org or 813-960-5121.

Friends of the River: This citizen-led group promotes â€œhealth and environmental policies that affect the quality and quantity of water in the Lower Hillsborough River.â€ They conduct several clean-ups a year as well.

Friendsofhillsboroughriver.org or 813-237-8497

Suncoast Sierra Club: This local chapter of the national environmental organization specifically targets the effects of local and state policy on our waterways. Floridasierraclub.org/suncoast or 727-945-0999.

Tampa Bay Watch: These nonprofit stewards of the Tampa Bay estuary work with students, at-risk youth, civic organizations and individual citizens to restore and protect the regionâ€™s wetlands.

Tampabaywatch.org or 727-867-8188.

Gulfport Water Watch: A grassroots effort of Gulfport community activists formed mainly to advocate for Clam Bayou, but also to guarantee citizens unfettered access to the water.

Gulfportwaterwatch.com or 727-323-9788.

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Last week, I profiled the environmental efforts of Kurt Zuelsdorf, owner and operator of Kayak Nature Adventures. Zuelsdorf has found a unique way to convince people to help him clean-up area waterways: offer them a chance to paddle local creeks and bayous in exchange for filling one or two bags with garbage.

(His next outing will be in Clam Bayou on Sept. 8 â€” check his Web site for details)

His efforts are even more crucial as developers eye the wetlands that many times offer the only barrier between trash-laden storm water and the area's bays and inland waters.

But Zuelsdorf is not alone in his attempts to clean up the regionâ€™s waterways. Several nonprofits on either side of Tampa Bay regularly organize water beautification projects.

Hereâ€™s a sampling of them: