Much has been made lately of the deplorable conditions in regards to litter at Tiverton’s two main beaches: Grinnell’s and Fogland. This sad fact has been obvious to me after 17 years of residency here (and its attendant property tax rate) and many years prior, as a visitor. The things I’ve found dumped on our shores, either deliberately or accidentally, is disgusting if not mind-boggling. 

At the risk of sounding elitist or worse, my observations over the years confirms the primary offenders are non-resident fisher people. My experience, nine times out of 10, is watching a large familial group in a Massachusetts-registered vehicle arrive at a clean stretch of beach and then observing plastic bags, water bottles, bait boxes, fishing tackle (including snelled multi-hooks) and used diapers left behind. This is a partial list. Indifference or ignorance seems the only explanation. 

Enter our town’s great unsung hero. 

For years, just about every day and especially Monday mornings in the aftermath of trash-disaster weekends, Joyce Andrews can be found trash bag and trash picker in hand, scouring almost all of Fogland for the copious amounts of garbage left behind from the previous two days. This woman deserves recognition (if not a medal) from our town. She’s unpaid for her service, doing it purely out of the goodness of her heart for the sake of Tiverton. 

So if you see her, say thanks and try to take some trash home each time you visit one of our beaches. Gently and diplomatically remind those who you may encounter in the act of littering that we, as citizens of the planet, can do better in our treatment of it ... if only for the sake of our great-grandchildren.

Finally, consider joining Joyce and many others on the Tiverton Litter Committee, https://letstalktrashtiv.wixsite.com/home.

Chris Clarendon

Tiverton