Several members of the community volunteered their time to pick up litter all across Swifts Beach and Swifts Neck Beach. The cleanup amassed a total of 15 pounds of trash including 825 cigarette butts.

Discarded cigarettes are the most common pieces of litter that they found said Don’t Trash Wareham Coordinator Nora Bicki.

Even this late into September, there are still families going to the beach to enjoy the long summer weather, and with many beach goers comes trash that finds its way into the water instead of the garbage.

This past May, five locals banded together under the name Don’t Trash Wareham to tackle Wareham’s litter problem. Their cleanup of local parks and streets was so successful that they joined again on Sept. 20 to clean up Swifts Beach and Swifts Neck Beach.

“We decided to join the state's Coastal Zone Management program COASTSWEEP which cleans up along waterways. We register beaches with the state, who sends us trash supplies and materials to record everything we pick up,” Bicki said.

Not only did locals lend their time to support the cleanup but some elected officials also showed up to help including Selectman Judy Whiteside, Town Moderator Claire Smith and School Committee member Judy Caporiccio.

Selectman Alan Slavin lent his moral support while recovering from surgery but he can often be seen cleaning up litter on Minot Avenue and on the Narrows.

Though the garbage they collected seems to tell a different story, Swifts Beach and Swifts Neck Beach were quite clean, Bicki said. According to locals, residents and those who frequent the beaches regularly take the time to clean them.

“That's exactly what we like to see,” said Bicki. “Wareham is a carry in, carry out community, so our beaches and parks should theoretically be clean. The folks who use Swifts Beach seem to recognize its beauty and do a fine job of picking up litter.”

More cleanups are scheduled for Little Harbor Beach on Sept. 26 from 10 a.m. to noon and for Onset Beach and Shell Point Beach on Oct. 3 at 10 a.m.