Sleeping Bear Surf holds plastics cleanup at Platte River mouth

From staff reports

Join The Cleanup Club and Sleeping Bear Surf on Saturday, April 27, from 10 am-noon for a cleanup at the Platte River mouth in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, as we work together to protect our Great Lakes from plastic pollution in celebration of Earth Month. Click here to RSVP.

Every year more than 22 million pounds of plastic pollution enters our Great Lakes, with an estimated 11 million ending up in Lake Michigan. With thousands of visitors to Platte River and Platte Point each summer, many of whom indulge in the water fiesta, the plastic pollution here is in desperate need of attention.

As the main artery amidst the lakeshore, Platte River is home to a beautiful, fragile ecosystem—inhabited by various fish species, birds, turtles, and mammals. Plastic pollution is a threat to that vital ecosystem. Every item that winds up in that beautiful river is bound for the big lake and beyond. Let’s tackle the point and stop the stream of rubbish before it enters Lake Michigan.