By Katrina Forrest, Surfrider Pacific Rim’s Zero Waste Expert

Why does everyone love this little slice of the island? Is it because of the mass migration of birds and whales, the clean air and large swaths of undisturbed forests, or the vast stretches of golden sand? 

The cedar, hemlock, sitka spruce, and douglas fir stretch from Port Alberni across all the rolling forested hills and straight to the ocean edge. The shore, a mix between bedrock filled with hidden tidepools, exploding with colourful sea life, contrasts with the fine, soft sand stretching for miles. The roar of the waves crashing on the beach drowns out all other sounds, and as I sit on the beach and look out to sea, it is as if I am alone with the world, and time slows down. 

Time has a way of standing still so that we can enjoy those moments when we are totally connected to our environment. Tofino gives that gift of being able to stop and experience what is around us in a way that can’t happen during the hustle and bustle of everyday living. So imagine that moment with me: toes in the sand, water creeping its way back up the beach, immersed in a moment of wellbeing, only to look down and see some strangers' deserted plastic glove coming in with the tide. 

I snap back to reality, to the pandemic, to the plastics crisis, to everything I just left behind in my moment of solitude, and I notice discarded plastics up and down the beach, along the walking trail, and scattered throughout the parking lot. This gorgeous biosphere reserve, which draws nearly a million people each year, can easily be overrun with trash. 

The garbage found on our beaches always increases during the summer, but this year is worse. Being able to take small trips around the province, or even over provincial borders has offered great relief from the stress of the pandemic, but people are still cognizant of the risks, which equals more single-use trash, and more littering. That means that the hallmarks of 2020, blue disposable masks and gloves, have become part of the landscape as people balance function and caution. 

I don’t have to tell you that this has detrimental effects for wildlife and ecosystems; we have all seen the images of washed up wildlife, choked full of plastic waste. But it also has a detrimental effect on our own relationship with nature which only works to further the problem as we become more and more dissociated with the environment. When our shared outdoor spaces are polluted they feel uncomfortable because the pollution negatively impacts aspects of our physical and psychological well being. This could mean that people find themselves not wanting to be exposed to the risks, they may stay inside, stay home, and miss opportunities to connect with nature in a way that increases their willingness to engage in pro-environmental behaviors.

A combination of fearing reusables and a fear of picking up others trash has resulted in waves of garbage on our shores. The disconnect caused by staying indoors makes it easier to walk by garbage without picking it up, and the scattered trash makes it easier to leave some of your own, and thus the vicious cycle is repeated. 

But Tofino is not only unique for its rugged coastline and soft, sandy beaches, it is also unique in the care and dedication provided by locals. With the help of the communities of the Pacific Rim, Surfrider has installed cigarette butt canisters (to collect butts for recycling), supported the District of Tofino and District of Ucluelet in banning plastic bags and plastic straws, registered 45 businesses as Ocean Friendly, is working to eliminate all plastic cutlery and polystyrene takeaway containers, and will soon be installing free water fountains around town to reduce plastic bottle use. All of these measures and more to come, make it significantly easier to avoid creating unnecessary waste on the Pacific Rim. 

In order to keep Tofino the beautiful sanctuary it has always been, make sure to wear reusable gloves and masks which can be purchased throughout town, when possible pick reusable vessels over single-use packaging, and please consider the #5minutebeachclean. A 5-minute beach clean is just as it sounds, and is a fast and simple way to leave the beach in better condition than you found it. 

To further the benefit of your beach clean, you can also download the Marine Debris Tracker app, and quickly document the litter and/or debris you’ve found. The app will keep track of everything you find and contributes to a large database of organizations and citizen scientists alike to track the most common ocean trash. This helps to find solutions at the root of the problem: producers.

As the green movement is finally taking hold, it is becoming clear that we can all help on an individual basis with the choices we make, but at the end of the day it is the mass producers, subsidized by our governments that are responsible for endless waves of trash. We want to see producers step up and take responsibility for their packaging; we want to see end-of-life plans for their products.This means provincial and federal governments enforcing regulations on industry to hold them responsible. Because of the systemic nature of the pollution problem, picking up trash alone will not solve this issue. Please use the app to document any trash you find and help hold industries responsible for the costs of their success.