Waste-removal group heads to McNabs Island for Star Wars-themed cleanup work

Scotian Shores is hosting a cleanup effort on McNabs Island on May 4. (Source: Facebook/Scotian Shores)

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Angela Riley, like so many people who were social distancing, needed to get outside. She and her kids went to one of the few places that was still open: the beach.

“It was all we could do,” she said.

Riley, walking along the shorelines of Nova Scotia, noticed one common thing: mounds of garbage. She started picking it up and recruiting volunteers to help with the endeavour.

“The scope of the problem in Nova Scotia is way bigger than I thought,” she said. “People signed up and it took off.”

Riley launched Scotian Shores and five years later the organization has ballooned into a cross-province effort that removes thousands of pounds of waste from beaches and parks.

One of their big projects this month involves a trip to McNabs Island for a cleanup job – with a galactic twist.

“The province made May 4 Litter Clean-up Day,” Riley said. “It’s also Star Wars Day. I’ll dress up as Darth Vader. We’re trying to make it fun.”

Riley said one of her earliest memories of seeing debris on Nova Scotia coastlines happened during a visit to McNabs Island. She said despite the constant efforts of groups like the Friends of McNabs Island Society, trash often washes up on the shores of the island.

“We can go to that island every two weeks and clean it,” she said. “Halifax Harbour will see specific garbage. Plastic bottles, food wrappers, plastic bags, cigarette butts, little bit of fishing debris there, lot of urban garbage there. Certain areas catch the garbage as it gets pulled out.”

The cleanup on Sunday will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be ferry trips to the island from Eastern Passage and Halifax.

“We’ll give you a bag and tell you to explore,” Riley said. “We want to be super accessible. I want people to explore the fortress.”

Reflecting on Scotian Shores, Riley is still impressed it’s been able to make such an impact on Nova Scotia nature.

“When I started, I did believe in it,” she said. “I come from a fishing family. We’re all connected to the ocean. We’ve all got somebody there. To the scope we have achieved, I’m pretty amazed.”

Anyone who wants to register for the McNabs Island cleanup is asked to email [e-mail].

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