Sonny’s, Sani 2 to host canal cleanup

Sonny’s Canal House, in partnership with Sanitary District No. 2 and Freeport-based Operation Splash, on July 8 will clean up the canal in Baldwin Harbor for the second year in a row.

More than 30 volunteers removed more than 1,500 pounds of waste and litter from the waterway last year. Event organizers are looking to do more this time around.

“We’re hoping to make it bigger and better this year,” Garrett Moore, of Sonny’s Canal House, said in an interview.

Doug Wiedmann, of Sanitary District No. 2 — which serves Balwin, South Hempstead and Roosevelt — also wants to see the event grow.

“The goal is to keep increasing that number year after year,” he said of the amount of litter removed from the bay.

The number of volunteers alone might be bigger, as Moore estimates 40 to 50 people will show up at the restaurant, including members of the Molloy College rugby team. Assemblyman Brian Curran and Nassau County Executive Laura Curran are also expected to attend, along with other area politicians.

But the organizers invite anyone else interested in helping out to come on down.

Volunteers are asked to arrive at Sonny’s Canal House by 10:30 a.m, when they will be assigned shifts on various boats to clean up the canal. After they complete their work, volunteers can relax and enjoy free refreshments provided by Sonny’s Canal House, located at 1 Jefferson Place in Baldwin Harbor, and live music performed by Vana Liya.

John Cools, a Sanitation commissioner, said last year’s canal cleanup was “tremendous.”

“When you look at the big picture of how the ocean is polluted, every little step is a tremendous movement,” he said. “Everybody really gets involved and helps.”

Rob Welther, executive director of Operation Splash in Freeport, said it’s no surprise more people are passionate about stopping pollution.

“The environment is getting a little bit more attention,” Welther said. “People are understanding that they have to take matters into their own hands.”

According to Long Island Study, a coalition of environmental advocates devoted to protecting the body of water its named after, there are multiple ways that litter thrown into the bay, or floatable debris, could hurt sealife.

“Floatable debris can harm wildlife when it is ingested or when organisms become entangled in it. Ingestion can cause suffocation or starvation,” the advocacy group states on its website. “Undigested plastic pellets can stay in the stomachs of wildlife, leaving no space for real food.”

Welther also stressed the importance of picking up trash when they see it, especially if the litter is plastic, so that it does not find its way into the water and potentially kill aquatic animals like dolphins, whales and turles.

Operation Splash will provide boats for the cleanup, and Sani 2 will be handing out equipment such as gloves and bags. The volunteers for the event will come from Operation Splash and the Molloy College rugby team. Baldwin-based Island Racing, a full-service marina and superstore, is also a sponsor and will provide boats to transport people and garbage receptacles along the canal.

For more information, you can call Sonny’s Canal House at (516) 867-9833 or Sani 2 at (516) 867-7485.