Keep Canada’s shorelines clean all year long.

Here are 10 easy steps for taking action today to keep your local shoreline clean and healthy.

• Drop-In at a TD Great Canadian Shoreline cleanup!
• Clean up your garbage, no matter where you are. Most shoreline litter actually originates from land-based activities. Every time it rains and the wind blows, litter inland makes it’s way into our storm sewers, creeks and rivers, and eventually out into the ocean. To find out more about aquatic debris visit the sources section of our website.
• Properly dispose of your cigarette butts. The number one litter item found on shorelines around the world is cigarette butts. Last year alone, we removed 233,817 cigarette butts from Canadian shorelines. Discarded cigarette butts emit harmful chemicals into the environment that maim or kill animals that ingest them. Use a portable ashtray to contain your ash and butts while you are away from your house. You can carry it with you until you find a garbage can. Find out more about cigarette litter at the CVW Cigarette Litter  website.
• Retrieve all your fishing lines and nets. Fishing line left in or near the water can entangle and even kill animals that come into contact with it. Remove others’ line that you find, but be careful not to pull snagged lines that may be caught on important things below the surface.
• Use cloth bags when you go shopping. Carry these bags with you to reduce to the number of plastic bags that you use. To find out more, visit this blog .
• Recycle used batteries and electronics. These items can leach toxic chemicals in the environment that will take a long time to go away. Many stores, such as Canadian Tire and Mountain Equipment Coop, offer recycling; ask at their customer service desks. Or check out your community’s recycling facilities and request battery recycling.
• Find alternatives to household and garden chemicals. Don’t use fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides that can wash into open waters. Use lemon juice, vinegar and baking soda for household cleaning. Check out this website   for more information on alternatives household cleaners.
• Recycle used motor oil and oil filters. Your local gas station should have facilities for recycling these materials. Never pour oil, paint antifreeze, or other household chemicals into an open sewer.
• Mark your local storm drains with a fish stencil to remind people that the things we dump end up in our waterbodies and have potentially harmful consequences. Visit the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Storm Drain Marking Program  .
• Challenge someone else to a shoreline cleanup in September
  The TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup takes place in every province or territory in Canada. Do you know someone in a different region who wants to take action? Then challenge them to sign up for their own cleanup and see if the amount of garbage they collect in their region matches the amount you collect!