'Don't ignore it': Local sailor cleans up waterways, teaches others how to do the same

Right now, 80% of the litter in our oceans is made up of plastic.

That startling number comes from research done by the United Nations.

A local sailor and his sailing club are working to clean up local waters before there is more plastic in the ocean than fish.

Action News Jax reporter Courtney Cole shows you the big impact this group is having on our local waterways.

Capt. Don Stokes has managed The Sailing Club & Sailing School in Jacksonville since 2004.

He’s spent a lot of time on Julington Creek and in the St. Johns River.

For the last 14 years, Stokes has been teaching people of all ages how to navigate the local waterways and keep them clean.

“What we do is, whenever we see garbage in the water, we hook it out. Either with a boat hook or a fish net,” Stokes told Action News Jax.

Stokes told Cole the garbage that's most problematic for the marine life is plastic.

“It clogs their intestinal tract and they end up starving to death," said Stokes.

Now let's talk about how this could affect you.

If wildlife ends up eating plastic, glass and paper -- it could end up on your plate.

"It ends up affecting everybody’s health. Totally aside from the fact that it doesn’t look good on Florida beaches or in the Florida waters,” said Stokes.

Stokes says while there isn't a lot of trash out now, most of it accumulates after holidays.

“It ends up blowing into the ocean or getting carried out by the tide.”

But he says he doesn’t think people are necessarily polluting our waterways purposely.

“A lot of the garbage, understand, is not stuff people are deliberately throwing-- but it blows out of a boat or it blows off the beach. It’s not an intentional trashing of our environment, but it happens,” Stokes told Action News Jax.

Stokes said he also believes it has something to do with more people choosing to relocate to the River City.

“Just as a natural function of the population growth in Jacksonville, we have an increase in pollution in the waters in the last 10 years,” Stokes said.

If you're wondering how you can help, Stokes says you don't have to be a part of the club, or even be a sailor, just:

“Don’t ignore it, when you see the garbage pick it up,” said Stokes.

If you’d like to do your part to help keep our waterways clean, The Sailboat Club & the American Sailing Association is holding an event to help clean up our waterways called Operation Plastic Pollution Purge.

They will be cleaning up between the Buckman Bridge and Black Creek from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 23.

Anyone who’s interested in helping is welcome.

If you don’t have a boat and still want to help, or for more information contact Stokes here: (904)-612-3444

Cox Media Group