The recent heavy rains have deposited streams of plastic, glass, and other trash on our shores and roads. Let’s help get rid of this unsightly mess – there are two opportunities to join in a community effort this Saturday.

On the beach, you can take part in the worldwide Coastal Cleanup, organized by the Ocean Conservancy. Meet at the North Guiones beach entrance, where volunteers will hand out trash bags starting at 7 a.m. Bring them back full, tell the volunteers what you collected, and estimate how much could have been recycled — you’ll be contributing to a worldwide database.

Beach trash is everywhere

When you’re done there, head on over to the Recycling Center and help Nosara Recicla clean up the road that goes by it, where people continue to throw garbage instead of taking it a few yards further to the dump. Meet at the Recycling Center at 8 a.m. and lend a hand. Thanks!

… And so is road trash.

In other news:

• Nosara Recicla has once again launched a Recycling Competition in Esperanza School. With the support of the school’s teachers, Harmony Hotel, and the Esperanza Development Association, students bring in their household’s recyclables every week to be separated and weighed. At the end of the year, the class that has brought the most recyclables is rewarded with a party. This is the second year of the project, which sponsors hope to expand to other schools in the Nosara district.
• With the help of Nosara Recicla, the Nicoya Municipality has sent the proposed budget for collection in Nosara to the Contraloria General de la República. To get to this point, Nosara Recicla contributed to mapping the entire district by GPS to estimate the number of homes and businesses here. If approved by the Contraloria, garbage collection could start by April 2017.
• The Santa Cruz landfill will soon be able to accept the garbage collected though Nosara Recicla’s “Clean up the Dump” campaign. Until now, this hasn’t been possible because current cells are not configured to accommodate the big trucks from Carrillo, which bring material to the hardware store and then load up with trash before they leave Nosara. Another cell, configured for the big trucks, is under construction and will be ready by mid-November. This is great news!

Remember to tell the Legislative Assembly that you support a country-wide ban on the use of styrofoam. If you haven’t signed our petition yet, here’s another chance: click here.