PHOTOS: Prospera volunteers clear debris from White Rock shoreline

A shoreline cleanup along White Rock’s West Beach Thursday (Oct. 7) was about promoting ocean conservation and giving back to communities, organizers say.

Led by Prospera Credit Union, the effort to “do some Local Good” saw small teams of volunteers pick up trash and debris from 2-4 p.m., as part of Ocean Wise and WWF-Canada’s Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.

“As an organization we are financially, emotionally and culturally invested in the local communities we serve,” Gavin Toy, Prospera’s president and CEO, said in a news release.

“As a company based out of Surrey, BC – with multiple branch locations across the region including one in the City of White Rock – we truly believe in the power of local banking and having an impact on our local communities.”

Cleanup participants collect data on the number, weight and type of litter found. The information is “shared locally and internationally (through Ocean Wise’s database) to inform litter-related policy.”

READ MORE: PHOTOS: Waterfront cleanup aims to remove ‘yuckies’ from East Beach

Prospera is donating $20,000 to the program, the release adds.

Ocean Wise director of plastic initiatives Laura Hardman said the effort is an example of how while stopping plastic pollution can seem overwhelming, “everyone can play a part by participating in a shoreline cleanup and reducing their own use of unnecessary plastic.”

The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup is a national conservation initiative launched in 1994. Thousands of cleanups – including many along White Rock and South Surrey waterfronts – are conducted every year along Canada’s shorelines by sundry groups and individuals.

Since launching, more than two million kilograms of trash has been cleared.