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Trash or Treasures: Wetland Edition

Written on: August 19th, 2016 in Wetland Assessments

People have been creators of some amazing inventions throughout history: wheels, cars, electricity, plastics and more! But what happens to these creations when they have outlived their use or are no longer wanted? You’re probably guessing that they end up in places like the dump, or antique stores or junk yards. But, would you believe that these unwanted items also end up left, dumped, or washed into our wetlands and their buffers?

Wetlands have the natural ability to clean and purify our waters by trapping excess sediments and nutrients, and they also have the unfortunate ability to trap our trash. That trash then prevents the wetland from being able to function fully, which isn’t good for us and the health of our waters.

We here at the Wetland Monitoring and Assessment Program, run into quite a few unique items as we walk through and assess Delaware’s wetlands. So, we thought we would put together a short list to show the array of man-made items we have found across Delaware, and let you ponder whether you think these items are “trash” or “treasures”.

From cool to creepy to junk, here are some of the items we have run across: golf balls, baby doll heads, Barbie’s, trash cans, BB gun, barrels, buoys, lamp post shades, glass bottles, crab pots, paddle boats, tires, cars, cranes and signs. Click here for more photos.

Moral of this story; if you see trash in or near a wetland, help a wetland out, and pick it up to properly dispose of it at the dump or antique store (Who knows, you might even make a little money.). As the saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

For more information on illegal trash dumping in Delaware or to report illegal dumping, please visit Delaware TrashStoppers.

Tags: Delaware Department of Natural Resources, wetland, Wetland Monitoring & Assessment Program