Discarded masks found along creeks, beaches and streets

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.

Like an Easter egg hunt, it doesn't take long to find light blue discarded masks in the environment. The masks meant to prevent the spread of COVID19 appear to be posing a problem in many communities.

Channelkeeper Interim Executive Director Ben Pitterle said,"The masks can be problematic and there is no question we are seeing more of those out there now than we ever did. Of course, they fall out of your pockets, they are hard to keep track of, but many masks, they are not just made of cloth. They have quite a bit of plastic in them, and they will remain in the food chain for quite a long time. Just like any of your single-use items, just be extra careful. Once it is in our local watersheds it will end up down in the ocean. We want to prevent that from happening as much as possible."

Channelkeeper volunteers will be picking them up during beach cleanups this Spring and Summer.

The city of Santa Barbara also contracts with an outside agency to clean them up along with other beach trash on Mondays and Fridays.

They do not recommended picking them up with bare hands. They recommend wearing protective gloves that should be thrown away after use.

Pitterle said so far they haven't seen as many discarded gloves.

People enjoying he outdoors after being cooped up during the pandemic have found cloth and paper masks.

In some cases strong winds are blowing them around.

Pat Wingate of Carpinteria said she sees them on her walks.

Wingate said she found them, "in the middle of the road, on the side of the road on the sidewalk, in the park."

She worries about wildlife will get a a hold of them.

"The elastic straps that go around your ears, the animals or the birds even could get their claws caught in the straps and become entangled," said Wingate.

For more information about Santa Barbara Channelkeeper's clean up efforts visit sbck.org.