By Brian Hall
In Jupiter, our waters are everything. They’re a source of activity, whether that be fishing, diving, surfing, paddling or even just enjoying a lazy day at the beach. They’re home to a thriving sea turtle population. They’re a sanctuary for peace and relaxation. They’re a communal symbol of the slow pace for our little beach town — a pace that we all love so much. And above all else, every ripple in the waters of our town brings flourishing communities together to enjoy all of the wonderful benefits.
Beyond all of that greatness lies an unfortunate reality, one that is far more than local: Our waterways are littered with trash.
In an effort to protect and preserve the precious waters of Jupiter, one community event in particular is leading by example in a unique way: Blueline Surf & Paddle Co.’s monthly paddle cleanup. The event was started by Jupiter-native and true water-woman, Shelby Hunzinger, who recognized the need for action a couple of years ago and quickly realized the impact that community truly can make. “I found myself becoming distracted when I was doing some group training paddles with [Blueline] and would detour to go pick up trash I was seeing on our paddle events. Some others in the group started joining in and I was inspired to start a separate event dedicated to a paddleboarding cleanup. The amount of people who showed up for the first one blew me away!”
One Saturday morning each month, the participants gather at Blueline, grab some cleanup gear provided by 4Ocean (a global organization on a mission to remove trash from our waterways), and slide their paddleboards into the water behind Guanabanas Restaurant. With each stroke of the paddle, it quickly becomes clear just how much trash there really is.
“We typically find a lot of plastic debris, straws, bottle caps, single-use plasticware, microplastics and such, and oddly a lot of toothbrushes are in that mix. We also collect fishing line that gets stuck in the mangroves, which is a danger to birds, manatees and the turtles,” Shelby said.
Besides the common trash we’d all expect, there’s always guaranteed to be some wild surprises. “We have found some pretty crazy stuff too like a bicycle, a toilet, and a few shopping carts!” Shelby said.
Large, small or crazy, every piece of trash removed makes a huge difference for the health and future of our waterways. If you live in Jupiter or even just enjoy visiting, this is an amazingly simple and fun way to give back to the resource that provides us so much joy.
Ready to be part of this community effort? We thought so. Onsite registration for the cleanup is $20, which includes a paddleboard rental (recommended, but you’re welcome to use your own) and cleanup gear. Beginner paddlers will find this adventure a great introduction to the sport as it’s a slow-paced exploration. To add some extra fun to the event, the paddler who collects the most trash will receive a well-earned prize from local sponsors.
It’s safe to say Shelby’s words about the water hit home for so many of us here. “It’s my happy place. I’m super passionate about protecting our waterways here and looking out for our marine life. When I see our wildlife on the water, to me it’s like seeing an old friend,” she said.
997 N. Highway A1A, Jupiter
bluelinesurf.com
@bluelinesurf_paddleco
