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The Texas Conservation Fund River, Lakes, Bays ‘N Bayous Trash Bash® Receives Gulf Guardian Award

Release Date: 09/03/2009
Contact Information: Gulf of Mexico Program Office at 228-688-3726

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The Gulf of Mexico Program recently announced that the Texas Conservation Fund of Houston, Texas will receive a third place Gulf Guardian Award for 2009 in the Civic/Non Profit Category. The 2009 Gulf Guardians hold a special significance this year as they will be awarded on the 10^th Anniversary of the Gulf of Mexico Program’s Gulf Guardian Awards Program! (2000-2009). The ceremony will be held on the evening of October 29, 2009, beginning at approximately 6 p.m in the Magnolia Ballroom at the Beau Rivage Resort in Biloxi, Mississippi. The Awards ceremony is being held in conjunction with the Oceans `09 International Conference.

In 1994, the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality organized the first River, Lakes, Bays ‘N Bayous Trash Bash® with 12 sites. In 1999, the River, Lakes, Bays ‘N Bayous Trash Bash® Steering Committee took ownership and began managing the event. The 16th annual event was held on Saturday, March 28, 2009. Sixteen clean-up sites hosted more than 4,600 participants who cleaned up 429,900 pounds of trash (214.95 tons) along 97 miles of shoreline. Over the past sixteen years, close to 60,000 volunteers have collected more than 1,900 tons of trash from the greater Houston area waterways. The Texas Conservation Fund is the 501 (c) (3) organization for the River, Lakes, Bays ‘N Bayous Trash Bash®. Their mission is to promote environmental stewardship of our watershed through public education by utilizing hands-on educational tools and by developing partnerships between environmental, governmental and private organizations.

This year’s Trash Bash® involved 16 clean-up sites and utilized a new educational display designed as a “guessing game” to educate participants about various decomposition rates and why it is so important to recycle and dispose of items properly. In previous years, site coordinators have been trained and supplied with educational displays such as “Enviroscape”, a table-top model that illustrates how what individuals do upstream feeds into our area waterways. Another year, each site was provided a volunteer to present an environmental magic show, in addition to a table-top display that showed the journey of trash on our street, through the storm drain, and eventually out to the Gulf.

The Gulf of Mexico Program initiated the Gulf Guardian awards in 2000 as a way to recognize and honor the businesses, community groups, individuals, and agencies that are taking positive steps to keep the Gulf healthy, beautiful and productive. A first, second, and third place award are given each year in seven categories individual, business, youth and education, nonprofit organizations, government, partnership and bi-national efforts.

"The Gulf Guardian Awards recognize the positive efforts to protect the important natural resources the Gulf of Mexico holds. The Gulf provides critical habitat for wildlife, recreation and commerce for humans, protection for inland communities, and so much more," said Acting Regional Administrator Lawrence Starfield of U.S. EPA Region 6. "By preserving this vital resource, this year's winners are gaining benefits for all Americans."

The Gulf of Mexico Program began in 1988 to protect, restore, and maintain the health and productivity of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem in economically sustainable ways. The Gulf of Mexico Program is underwritten by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is a non-regulatory, inclusive consortium of state and federal government agencies and representatives of the business and agricultural community, fishing industry, scientists, environmentalists, and community leaders from all five Gulf States. The Gulf Program seeks to improve the environmental health of the Gulf in concert with economic development.

Bryon Griffith, Director of the Gulf of Mexico Program said, “The Gulf Guardian Awards Program is in its 10^th year of honoring citizens, governments and businesses throughout the 5 State Gulf Region for outstanding environmental achievements. Our 2009 award winners are truly an inspiration and exemplify the high quality of projects being done that generate as much excitement and pride as the award winners did in the beginning. With the addition of the Binational Gulf Guardian award in 2005, we now appropriately pay tribute to the bond we share in protecting this treasured resource with our southern neighbors and friends.”

For a list of all the Gulf Guardian Award winners for 2009, visit the Gulf of Mexico Program web site at https://www.epa.gov/gmpo and click on the Gulf Guardian Award button.


Editor’s Note: For more information about the Gulf Guardian Awards and the Gulf of Mexico Program, call the Gulf of Mexico Program Office at 228-688-3726 or visit our web site at https://www.epa.gov/gmpo.