By Jason Scheer
Stefanie Reis was one of those people who saw the beautiful day as a chance to take to the waterways. However, her excursion around the harbors wasn't fueled by a desire to relax or to soak up some rays. Instead, she was in pursuit of cans, bottles and other garbage that has turned harbors into garbage dumps.
Reis is second vice president of Operation SPLASH (Stop Polluting Littering And Save Harbors), a grassroots organization dedicated to eradicating pollution in local waterways. The organization started in 1990 with only two members, Al and Joanne Grover. Joanne, who grew up in Freeport, noticed a drastic increase in the amount of garbage in the water compared with when she was younger. Instead of complaining about it, though, the Grovers wanted to do something about it. They donated their claming garvey that May, and by the end of the summer more than 200 volunteers had collected tons of debris.
Reis said that the Grovers' initiative is still the guiding principle of SPLASH, as members not only recognize the garbage problem, but try to fix it, in pursuit of the goal of clean waterways.
"Instead of complaining about what needs to be done, we do it," Reis said.
Today SPLASH has 500 active members and has grown to include chapters throughout the South Shore, including Bellmore, Merrick and Point Lookout. Reis also said that the organization is actively seeking to open a chapter in Baldwin.
Members of SPLASH participate in daily cleanup cruises, traveling around the harbors for three hours every day of the week. For this excursion, Reis was joined by four fellow SPLASH members: Bill Halvorsen, Mary Kane, Alice Tuminello and Tony Carrello.
Armed with long skimmers and four large garbage cans, the quintet untied their modest blue-and-white boat from the dock at the Guy Lombardo Marina. Within minutes, Tuminello spotted a bottle floating next to a dock. The motor churned and the boat sped over to the bottle. With her skimmer, Tuminello reached into the water and scooped it out, depositing it in the garbage can.
The process continued, with members of the crew pointing to garbage and chasing it down. Periodically, other boaters passed by, either wearing looks of bewilderment at the strange craft or gushing with praise.
"You guys do a great job," said one passerby. "Keep it up," said another.
With the high tide, most of the garbage collected on this day would be limited to floating bottles and cans. However, the SPLASH crew has picked up many bizarre items, including golf balls, couches, a gymnastics mat and a message in a bottle.
"You name it, it's out there," Reis said.
An inordinate amount of the garbage makes its way to the corners of the canals. "The ends of the canals are horrible," Halvorsen said.
As the boat rocked back and forth, Halvorsen extended his arms to reach a remnant of trash stuck in a wooden dock. "I got it," he said, and the others pushed off with their poles to turn the boat around.
The process continued, as Carrello, the captain, steered the boat from dock to dock, from harbor to harbor in search of any stray garbage. Two hours and a full can worth of garbage later, the crew was ready to return to port.
Sunday's trip was an abridged one. Normally, members of the crew make their way onto marshland around the harbors. Halvorsen said that cleaning the marsh is critical to maintaining healthy waterways, and that the eroding marshland is one of the most prevalent problems in the area.
"The waterways that used to be eight feet wide are now 50 feet wide," he said.
As the boat approached the dock back at marina, there was a collective feeling of accomplishment aboard. "It's good to be giving back, to be doing something," Reis said.
SPLASH is always seeking new members. An annual individual membership is $10, while an annual family membership is $15. Reis hopes that more people will give up some of their time for such a worthy cause. "If everyone would give in that little bit, we would have a much better world to live in," she said.
SPLASH meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at the Seaport Museum, 202 Woodcleft Ave., "Nautical Mile" Freeport. For those who cannot volunteer time, donations are greatly appreciated. Money provides gas for the boat, repairs, supplies, nets, garbage cans, etc. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer and joining SPLASH, or for more information, call (516) 378-4770.
