The following release was sent by The Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup.
The Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup, an initiative of Pollution Probe and the Council of the Great Lakes Region, is excited to welcome the City of Belleville in Ontario, Canada, to its network of sites working to address plastic pollution across the Great Lakes. Situated on the north side of the Bay of Quinte, the two Seabins newly installed at Belleville’s Meyers Pier will contribute to the initiative’s data collection and public engagement efforts at the eastern end of Lake Ontario.
“We are thrilled to welcome the City of Belleville to the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup,” says Christopher Hilkene, CEO of Pollution Probe. “The addition of a new site to the initiative’s network will create new opportunities for community involvement and the data obtained will help both local and regional efforts to tackle plastic pollution in the Great Lakes.”
Belleville is referred to as the beautiful city (“Belle Ville”), known for its lovely waterfront trails, and access to a number of excellent beaches, and boating and fishing opportunities. The new plastic capture devices installed through the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup will build on the City’s existing efforts to mitigate the impacts of pollution on local waterways, including through the installation of another type of plastic capture device – the LittaTrap. In 2021, the City’s Green Task Force piloted three LittaTraps along the Riverfront and Waterfront trails to divert plastic from entering the Moira River and the Bay of Quinte. The pilot project was so successful (13.5 kg of debris was collected) that an additional 17 devices were installed in additional locations across the city.
“The City of Belleville is very proud to be part of the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup,” said City of Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis. “As a city, we are committed to protecting our shoreline habitat areas and improving the quality of water run-off to our two main drinking water sources – the Bay of Quinte and Moira River. Initiatives like the LittaTrap and Seabin projects help us do just that. We look forward to the results these devices will garner going forward.”
The Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup launched in 2020 with an initial 21 sites along the Canadian shoreline of the Great Lakes. The initiative has since grown to include over 80 locations and 90 collaborators in both Canada and the U.S. The City of Belleville joins a growing number of sites along the northern shore of Lake Ontario where the initiative’s data from 2022 showed an average of 125 pieces of debris removed by plastic capture technologies around the lake each day. Belleville’s participation in the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup will contribute to further data being collected on the sources, types and pathways for plastic entering the lakes, a critical step in finding effective, long-term solutions to the issue of plastic pollution.
