It’s been almost two weeks since an unusual wave of trash from the Bay of Fundy washed ashore in Chance Harbour, N.B.
“It was a natural disaster,” says Chance Harbour resident Kathleen McNamara. “That’s what it looked like, and you’d have to experience it to really understand.”
A giant wave of seaweed dragged in countless pieces of trash, plastic and fishing debris, and Chance Harbour residents have been trying to clean up their beach ever since.
However, much of the trash has since been taken by the tide and washed back out into the bay.
“It’s gone into the ocean again. We couldn’t get all of it. It was impossible for a small group,” says resident Natalie Tapley. “We didn’t have any backup from the government of anyone else to help. Any garbage we didn’t get would have taken 1,000-plus man hours to do it and we couldn’t do it. There was no way, so Bay of Fundy is getting it again.”
Labels on some of the individual pieces of trash indicate that some of the garbage came from as far away as the Boston area. A glass bottle from Nova Scotia was among the items.
“Hi my name is Kaylee. I’m from Long Island, Nova Scotia. Please write me back,” said a message inside the bottle.
Tapley has been blogging about the beach and the garbage. She says she has received responses of support from around the world.
“But they all had one thing in common, and as nice as the emails were, they were all furious, and I mean furious.,” says Tapley. “They were angry that this happens and keeps going on.”
With files from CTV Atlantic's Mike Cameron
