Volunteers are being sought for the 13th Annual Lahaina Town Clean Up to be held Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017. Registration begins at 8 a.m. with coffee and breakfast snacks provided by Ruth’s Chris Steak House as instructions and equipment are distributed to participants. The cleanup will be held from 9 a.m. to noon, followed by lunch for volunteers donated by Pacific’o and water provided by Tropic Water.

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The 13th Annual Lahaina Town Clean Up event is supported by Mālama Maui Nui’s “Get the Drift and Bag It!” campaign, in conjunction with The Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Clean Up Day.

“Get the Drift and Bag It!” is an opportunity for residents and visitors alike to join in a global effort to remove litter and debris from our coastal environment. The statewide campaign is a part of the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup that kicks off annually the third Saturday in September.

The ICC engages hundreds of thousands of volunteers each year to take action for the ocean and for the creatures that depend on it. Over its 30 years of existence, approximately 10.5 million people have picked up some 192 million pounds of litter across more than 150 countries. Organizers say that by participating in the 13th Annual Lahaina Town Clean Up, you can make a difference, right here in your own community.

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Last year, more than 500 volunteers participated in the Lahaina Town Clean Up, cleaning the Westside of Maui from Puamana to Māla Wharf and everywhere in‐between. The event has taken place for 12 years in collaboration with Mālama Maui Nui, the Hui O Waʻa Kaulua, and local surf schools and businesses making it not only one of the largest, but one of the most successful ongoing town cleanups in Hawaiʻi with over 2 tons of rubbish being collected to date.

Lahaina Town Clean Up founder Matt Lane has challenged this year’s organizers to address prevention as a focus of the cleanup. “To work toward accomplishing this goal, we are partnering with the County of Maui to place an emphasis on prevention as a means to combat the issue of waste showing up in our oceans through our drains. Volunteers will be stenciling awareness messages of ‘No Dumping – Drains to Ocean’ at storm drain inlets in Lahaina,” said Ashley Roussel one of the event organizers and stencil project chairperson.

Cleanup volunteers are requested to download and utilize the Clean Swell App to keep track of the debris removed during the cleanup. This data will be added to the International Coastal Cleanup’s marine debris database. Results from the data help inform policy and debris removal efforts. Data cards will also be made available if needed and need to be turned in at the end of the cleanup.

“We are excited to encourage this event as zero waste,” said Tambara Garrick one of the event organizers and Hawaiʻi Regional Sales Manager for Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., “The surf schools are donating ti leaves and compostable plates for the lunch which is generously donated by Pacific’o. Ace Hardware is donating reusable gloves and equipment and Maui Brewing Co. is providing grain bags that can be washed and reused for future clean up events. Tropic Water will have a water station so that volunteers can refill their reusable water bottles with cold water. These are just some of the examples of businesses coming together in support of this event and in giving back to the Lahaina community, hand in hand with community volunteers.”

Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own water bottle and gloves to the event. For more information go to visitlahaina.com or call (808) 269‐8457.

Event Sponsors and Volunteer Teams include: Down the Hatch, Maui Surf Clinics, Volcom, LahainaTown Action Committee, Mālama Maui Nui, Ace Hardware, Lahaina Yacht Club, County of Maui, Maui Surfrider Foundation, Lahaina Sunset Rotary, Trilogy, West Maui Parasail, Island Star Excursions, Hui O Waʻa Kaulua, Makai Adventures, The Coffee Store Nāpili, Maui Brewing Co., The Block, UFO Parasail, Goofy Foot Surf School, Beach Bum’s Island Grill, Peter Lik Gallery and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.