This past Sunday, a small but dedicated group of local volunteers met at Lahaina Harbor to take part in Trilogy Excursions' monthly Blue’Aina cleanup. The Corporate Sponsor was Hawaii Sea Spirits who donated to the Surfrider Foundation Maui. The food was generously donated by the Old Lahaina Luau.

Despite the 500 plus volunteers who came out and picked up over 300 bags of trash as part of the Lahaina Town cleanup just the previous week, our Blue’Aina crew still managed to find enough garbage around Lahaina Harbor to fill multiple bags. As part of every Blue’Aina outing, we take time to give back to the 'aina in addition to the ocean by collecting refuse left behind by the thousands of people who pass through. Once all the bags were collected and disposed of, we boarded TRILOGY I and made our way to Cliff House. After an hour of snorkeling, the only ocean trash we found was a plastic cup. ONE PLASTIC CUP! While we hope this is a condition that continues, we will continue to search for the big offenders like car batteries. Finding a single plastic cup is a check in the victory column and as we start to see parts of our reef staying trash free, we can begin to consider additional ways the Blue'Aina campaign can give back to the community. Throughout the whole day, our volunteers were rewarded with some of the most delicious food ever donated. Old Lahaina Luau really knocked it out of the park, providing us with fried rice, fish, teriyaki beef, shoyu chicken, banana bread, vegetables, and fruit to boot.  Our volunteers left with happy, full bellies.

Our Corporate Sponsor, Hawaii Sea Spirits is well known for their OCEAN Organic Vodka. OCEAN Organic Vodka is a family owned business that started back in 2005. The Smith family has lived on Maui for generations and wanted to drive a business that is eco-conscious and strives for sustainability. Inspired by their love for the ocean, OCEAN Organic Vodka supports organizations charged with oceanic conservation.

"True to Ocean Vodka’s organic and sustainable commitment, the Ocean Vodka Organic Farm and Distillery Tour educates guests on the importance of organic farming for the conservation of land and ocean, green manufacturing and the production of spirits.

"Our lesson to teach? You can act responsibly with the environment and your health in highest priority, and still produce a superior product at a competitive price."

The Surfrider Foundation Maui is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting our oceans, beaches, and waves and hosts monthly beach cleanups the 3rd Saturday of every month. They run and support campaigns such as, Rise Above Plastics, Ocean Friendly Gardens, Blue Water Task Force, Protect Peahi, and Save Olowalu just to name a few. If you would like to volunteer with Surfrider Maui you can contact Magen by emailing: volunteercoordinator@maui.surfrider.org

Mahalo to all of our business supporters and continuous volunteers as this effort would not be possible without you. Our next Blue’Aina cleanup will be held October 16th, leaving from Lahaina Harbor. Head over to the website to reserve your space! 

By Conservation and Education Director, Magen Schifiliti