BRICK – Locals gathered on a sunny Saturday morning to scan for litter and debris at the Airport Tract off Drum Point Road.
Families had registered for “Pick Up Brick” which offers several community cleanups throughout the township. Pick Up Brick, the Township’s anti-litter campaign, has held five cleanups so far this year, with more planned for the fall season.
The August cleanup was held at the Airport Tract, which was once the home of a small airport in the 1940s and eventually closed in the late 1950s. In 1998, Brick Township purchased the land and is now an open space preservation area that provides public walking and biking trails.
“It [Airport Tract] connects to a lot of different neighborhoods. About 5 to 10 different neighborhoods throughout the south side of town,” said Vin Palmieri, Brick Township Environmental Commission Secretary.
Tony Kono, who is the Chairman of the Brick Township Environmental Commission, explained how the campaign is aiming to hold a cleanup once a month.
“Between myself, Vin, the Mayor, and the Environmental Commission, we’ve all kind of chosen the different spots in Brick that need attention,” Kono said. “I’ve been here for 14 years so I know which areas need attention. We go through the list – we especially pick places the public uses.”
“The whole Pick Up Brick campaign was sort of mine and a previous secretary of the Environmental Commission Kieth Rella’s idea. He and I created the campaign right after Superstorm Sandy because there was trash everywhere. It’s now turned into a regular event where we do it two to three times a year,” Kono said.
“When mayor Lisa Crate came on the scene – not that former mayor Ducey wasn’t supportive of Pick Up Brick – she wants to do it every month now,” Kono added.
Many of the wooded areas apart of the Airport Tract back up to many residential homes. One family of volunteers found several different kinds of household trash, such as plastic bottles or cans along with plastic bags. Near the end of the day, volunteers collected massive pieces of construction debris that was found littered throughout a section of woods.
“We live on the Barnegat Bay, so any piece of trash that ends up in the environment will eventually end up in the bay – whether it’s a year or 10 years because of rain and runoff and everything,” Kono said. “Since so much of the community’s economy revolves around the bay, who will keep it clean? Every piece of trash that we can keep out of the water, is going to have some sort of long-term impact on us.”
The next Pick Up Brick event is set for September 28 at Breton Woods, Osbornville Elementary School. For more information, call Vin Palmieri at 732-262-1000 ext. 1325.
