April 13, 2009 — St. Croix residents appeared to take to heart the message on the sign at the entrance to the Altoona Lagoon Picnic area: "Keep Our Island Clean."
A survey of four of the island beaches as the annual Easter camping activity closed down Monday showed very little litter. This year beaches visited included Cramer Park, Southgate Coastal Reserve, Ha'penny and Altoona Lagoon.
The only litter spotted was light debris that may have just gotten away from the campers as it blew in the wind. Here and there along the beach one could see an empty soda can, small chip bags or clear plastic cups. A new pair of little girls flip-flops were seen close to the waterline at Cramer Park — the little owner was probably upset they were left.
This is the second year in a row where there was no sign of the large trash heaps found in previous years. The issue appeared to reach a peak in 2007, when officials from the National Park Service and the Department of Natural Resources went public with complaints that campers were abusing the shore environment. That year some campers left behind a ceramic toilet that had been in use as a poor approximation of an outhouse.
V.I. Waste Management Authority diligently kept up with trash removal at Southgate. A white VIWMA pickup truck was seen dropping off empty wheeled green trash cans and carting off the full ones. Campers were spotted dumping wooden pallets in trash bins and not just leaving them for someone else to dispose of.
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