One hundred foam and plastic buoys collected and removed from the five islands in Murray Harbour.

In a joint effort between The Nature Conservancy of Canada and the Island Nature Trust, Reynold’s Island, Herring Island, and Thomas Island in Murray Harbour, Prince Edward Island has much less fishing debris today that can threaten the marine wildlife.

Originally scheduled to be a kayaking event, the high winds and strong currents ensured our plans would need to be changed in favor of powered fishing boats.

In 2014, The Nature Conservancy of Canada conserved Thomas Island, the last Murray Harbour island still threatened by development — thus completeing the goal of protecting the entire archipelago of 5 islands.

Until you get out there or see the images, it can be difficult to realize just how much gets washed up on shore over the seasons. In just a few hours, our small group of volunteers filled 21 bags with garbage and collected approximately 100 fishing buoys.

“Every year close to 3,000 people contribute their time and efforts to caring for nature through NCC Conservation Volunteers program.”

For more images from this and other NCC events I have participated, visit my small collection of images I have at stephendesroches.com/NCC/