No Butts About It: Keep Hawaii’s Beaches Clean

Not 100, not 200, but 10,000 cigarette butts were plucked from the "pristine" shores of Waikīkī Beach during a massive clean up recently. That's beyond mind-boggling for me, and to think, that's only the top layer of the years-upon-years worth of sand for this single stretch of beach.

Granted, it's one of the most popular beaches in Hawai‘i, but still, imagine how many butts linger at the second most popular or even the third. It's all thanks to students, environmentalists and some tourists that Waikīkī can be beautiful again – even if just for a little while. Seriously, though, thank you.

This effort was in support of a recently introduced bill that could potentially kick those butts out of O‘ahu beaches. From what I know, O‘ahu is the only Hawaiian Island to propose this ban from their beaches. Hopefully, if the bill gets the green light, it'll encourage other islands to follow suit.

Litter annoys me, but cigarette butts are one of my absolute pet peeves. I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a litter nazi. If I see you throw trash on the ground, I'll ask you to pick it up. It's as simple as that. I live here, too, and want to enjoy this beautiful place we call paradise just as much as the next person. Why should I let some idiot ruin that for me? And it's not only about, us, humans. It's the life on land and in the water that suffer from this ignorance or plain laziness. The ground is not your ashtray! 

This is everyone's beach – whether you live here or are visiting from a far off country. Picking up just one or two cigarette butts may seem like a minor attempt to keep the beaches clean, but trust, it's HUGE for Hawai‘i. It'll mean a cleaner vacation for the next time you visit and most importantly, a cleaner Hawai‘i for future generations to come.

Posted by Alyssa S. Navares Follow me on Twitter @Uamalie87

Published by Bruce Fisher

Since 2006 Bruce Fisher has been publishing the Hawaii Vacation Blog and the Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast which, create daily content about Hawaii Travel and Tourism. This Blog is the only online resource providing Hawaii-based information aimed at travelers seven days per week. Postings reflect the Hawaiian Islands, their culture and their lifestyle as accurately and thoroughly as possible.

Entry Filed under: Oahu,Ocean

February 1st, 2013