Tampa Bay Watch and Audubon Florida are hosting the 31st Annual Fishing Line Island Cleanup and we need your help! This is a self-led event, where participants will travel out to their designated location by personal boat/other watercraft any day between Saturday, November 16 - Sunday, November 24.
We are recruiting volunteers with boats, kayaks, and paddleboards to help remove fishing line and marine debris from the shorelines of coastal bird habitats. This event is incredibly important to the health of our local waterbird colonies. We aim to remove potential hazards from the islands and coastal habitats before the start of nesting season in order to reduce potential fishing line entanglements. Tampa Bay is home to 15,000-20,000 tree-nesting colonial waterbird pairs. With your help, we can support future generations of these magnificent birds.
If you would like to participate in this event:
1. Please use this map to locate sites that are accessible for your type of watercraft, then sign up for a specific site at this link. If you have a group, please have only the captain or group leader sign up. At this time, please sign up for only one site per group. We may open the option for multiple sites closer to the event start date depending on site availability.
2. Register below on this webpage. This ensures we have your contact information to send all final details and confirm your designated site. We will contact all registered participants within two weeks of the event with detailed instructions.
If you do not fill out both, we will not have a way to confirm sites and get in contact with you, and therefore, will open back up the site location to other interested parties.
Notes for Participants:
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Some boat ramps may not be operational due to Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Please verify with local authorities they are open and operational before your field day.
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Please be extra careful when navigating waterways. Hazardous materials may be floating or submerged due to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
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If you would like to recycle your collected fishing line, please drop it off at one of the following locations:
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Tampa Bay Watch - 3000 Pinellas Bayway S. Tierra Verde, FL 33715
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Tarpon Fishing Outfitters Tackle Shop - 1500 US-19, Holiday, FL 34691
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Riviera Bait and Tackle - 1106 94th Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
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Angler 360 Bait Tackle & Apparel - 290 Causeway Blvd, Dunedin, FL 34698
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Gator Jim's Tackle - 3301 Pinellas Point Dr S, St. Petersburg, FL 33712