Nearly 400,000 Pieces Of Trash Removed From Beaches In 2022

By Alyssa Riccardi LONG BRANCH

– Everything from cigarette butts to a giant 3-foot teddy bear were among the thousands of pieces of garbage collected off our beaches during Clean Ocean Action’s (COA) 2022 beach sweeps.

The Long Branchbased environmental organization recently released their 2022 Beach Sweeps Report.

Volunteers rallied together last year to pick up a total of 376,969 pieces of trash, according to the organization. Some of the most common garbage items included thousands of plastic bottle caps and lids, over 37,000 food and candy wrappers, and more than 22,000 cigarette filters.

Amidst the garbage was the “Roster of the

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A kitchen and laundry room are available for families in transition. Upstairs bedrooms converted to play areas and meeting rooms provide daytime refuge to Family Promise clients. The already homeless admitted to the program will fi nd sleeping accommodations in a location separate from the Day Center.

“Some of the people who call us have the impression that we won’t help them until they’re living in their car,” said Krista Raj, one of the group’s case managers. “We’re a resource and here to act as advocates because navigating the system is really difficult.”

Family Promise is a national organization that began in Summit, New Jersey. According to its mission statement, the goal is to “help families experiencing homelessness and economic uncertainty to achieve sustainable independence through prevention programs, advocacy and community support services.”

The local non-profit changed names recently to reflect an expansion in its service base. Formerly known as Family Promise of Southern Ocean County, the organization branched out to the entire county to offer its prevention program during COVID. As Family Promise of the Jersey Shore, the group plans to fi nd additional host sites to house the already homeless in other parts of Ocean County.

Referrals generally come from the Ocean

County Board of Social Services, which provides those in need with a list of agencies that can help them. Someone who works in Toms River or whose children attend school there may fi nd it too expensive and time-consuming to move into temporary accommodations in Little Egg Harbor. Family Promise hopes its expansion will provide a safe haven in the northern end of the county as well.

Between its prevention program and temporary housing support, Family Promise assisted 1,700 individuals by the end of 2022.

Homelessness Prevention

Elizabeth Golla, the non-profit’s executive director, said one of the group’s goals focuses on preventing people from going through the rigors of losing housing in the fi rst place.

Not only does the organization step in and assist people in catching up on back rent and mortgage payments, but it also ensures families are not affected by utility shutoffs by taking care of outstanding bills.

“We have paid to fi x cars to make sure people can get to and from work,” added Golla. “We try to offset other costs, so they use their money to keep them housed rather than becoming homeless.”

Additional support can come in the form of food, clothing, or toiletry needs. Family Promise also dedicates much of its efforts to making life as “normal” as possible for children. This includes making sure families have access to ample school supplies, as well as Easter baskets and Christmas gifts. Meanwhile, the monetary assistance isn’t intended to act as a Band-Aid solution. The premise is that fi nancial aid and other associated services will help people move forward and take the edge off what might otherwise feel like an abysmal situation.

“We are not a handout, but a hand up,” stressed Golla. “We can try to help a little bit, but they (program participants) have to be able to show future affordability.”

Circumstances dictate how those signed up for Family Promise’s Prevention Program participate in requisite meetings. Options include Zoom, the library, or by telephone and feature lessons on fi nancial budgeting, problem-solving, and conflict resolution.

A Place For Families Without Homes

Family Promise arranges shelter for families courtesy of various churches within the community. A classroom or other type of room may be cleared to accommodate parents, grandparents, and children – or whomever else is considered part of the family unit.

“We have a trailer with beds, and they get pulled in,” Golla explained. “Volunteers will decorate the room and make it look like a regular bedroom and house. For example, if intake notes indicate a child loves ‘Frozen,’ we use Elsa and Anna bedsheets.”

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“The Township Committee has received a revaluation order from the Ocean County Board of Taxation,” announced Deputy Mayor Lydia Dodd. “The order is to implement a municipal wide revaluation of the Township of Ocean.”

The order calls for completion of the revaluation by November 1, 2023, to go become effective in 2024.

Dodd said the governing body decided to appoint Lynch to complete the project rather than hiring an outside company that does not know the town or its homes.

“Doing the project in-house and hiring outside inspectors to work under Martin is a large cost savings,” Dodd

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Ridiculous,” as COA calls it, which is the most outrageous fi nds during a beach sweep. Some of these wacky items included asparagus, a car muffler, handlebars from a bike, Legos and more.

COA’s Beach Sweeps are held twice a year with a goal to clean the environment while recording debris for data which helps with federal and state legislation.

COA’s advocacy campaign manager Kari Martin said the data has helped push the state’s ban on single-use plastic bags and said. “Martin Lynch is well versed in the homes and different sections of the town. An outside company would cost upwards of $600,000 and handling the project in-house will cost the town $250,000 over five years.”

An ordinance passed by the governing body allows the township to spread the cost of the mandated re-assessment over five years.

Lynch explained that the difference between a revaluation and a re-assessment is that the tax assessor performs the reassessment, while a revaluation is completed by an outside company.

Homes in the Township of Ocean were last re-assessed in 2012, with the New Jersey Division of Taxation records indicating that the average township property is assessed at 72.76% of its plastic-foam takeout containers, which have decreased nearly 38% since the ban.

According to the report, volunteers removed 5,833 plastic bags; 21,216 straws and 1,689 plastic food containers in 2022.

“We’re able to turn all of that effort into a legacy of information that we can use to change policies and to make the changes that we need to reduce litter that gets into our ocean and into our waterways,” said Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action. “It’s is not just ugly on the beaches, but as many of you know it’s lethal or harmful to marine life.” market value.

“Re-assessment is the process of appraising all real estate in a municipality according to its full and fair value, to ensure that each property owner pays their fair share of taxes,” said Lynch. “The process is revenue neutral, meaning the purpose is not to raise property taxes.”

Property inspections related to the upcoming reassessments will begin in April and are scheduled for completion in October. The process entails inspecting both the interior and exterior of all homes. Inspectors plan to collect data regarding several factors, not limited to design, style, overall condition, plumbing, heat source, air conditioning, and basements.

“If a resident is not home on the inspector’s visit,” Lynch shared. “A notice will be left asking the resident to call the

During a recent press conference, COA staff explained that the amount of garbage pulled off New Jersey beaches last year dropped from 2021.

Disposable face masks decreased by 40%, disposable wipes also decreased by 40%, and plastic bottle caps and lids dropped 29%. Other items such as e-cigarette cartridges, dog waste bags, and disposable gloves all saw a significant decline.

During the Q&A session, one person questioned the restriction of outdoor balloons. COA said they are currently working to find a sponsor, as balloons and their ribbons are a great threat to seabirds, sea turtles and office and schedule an appointment.” marine mammals, COA said.

Notices of the new assessed values for each property will be mailed at the end of this year and will reflect a change starting with 2024 tax bills. A re-assessment does not necessarily mean an increase in taxes for every homeowner and is designed to ensure that each property owner is paying their fair share of taxes.

Lynch said the tax rate will go down to compensate for the increase in assessed values. He added that since not all properties have appreciated in value at the same rate, some people may see their tax bill go down, while others go up.

Anyone with questions about the re-assessment should consider attending one of the information sessions or contacting the Tax Assessor’s office at 609-693-3302.

“We really need to change the public awareness about balloons. They’re beautiful. They’re fun, but they’re inside toys or things to be very careful with.,” Zipf said.

This Year’s Sweep

The press conference relaying last year’s information had another purpose: to bring attention to this year’s clean-up.

If you’d like to be a volunteer in the organization’s 2023 Beach Sweeps, it will be held on April 1 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. across the Jersey Shore. For a list of locations, visit cleanoceanaction.org/aboutbeachsweeps.