Editing Padre Island National Seashore (section)

==Shoreline trash==
{{further|Marine debris}}
[[File:Trash on Padre Island.jpg|thumb|upright|A bottle lies tangled with seaweed and fishing line in Padre Island National Seashore]]
During periods throughout the summer months there may be a large amount of ''[[Sargassum]]'', a brown seaweed, which washes up on the shore which aids in shore development by acting to hold sand in place, which can eventually build up the shoreline. Currents within the [[Gulf of Mexico]] are responsible for the transport of this seaweed mainly from the [[Sargasso Sea]], but have also been responsible for the transport of trash to the shores of the park. This trash can be anything that is tossed overboard into the [[Gulf of Mexico]] as well as items that are either washed into the [[Gulf of Mexico|Gulf]] from land, or from the interior of the country by means of sewers that empty into the [[Gulf of Mexico|Gulf]]. These items can range from tiny pieces of plastic, hypodermic needles, and lumber, to nets or bleach bottles tossed overboard by shrimpers and even objects as large as buoys and steel containers. An international treaty known as [[MARPOL]] is designed to limit the dumping of wastes into the [[Gulf of Mexico|Gulf]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.imo.org/Conventions/contents.asp?doc_id=678&topic_id=258 |title=International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto (MARPOL) |access-date=2008-07-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080730014512/http://www.imo.org/Conventions/contents.asp?doc_id=678&topic_id=258 |archive-date=2008-07-30 }}</ref> but there can be violators and the enforcement of the treaty is difficult, as well as the fact that some trash can originate from sewage transport or even come from the [[Equator]].<ref>[http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rrg07 Handbook of Texas Online – GULF OF MEXICO<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Oil and tar can commonly wash up onto the beaches as well, 94% of which originates from oil spills, engine lubrication oil, and tanker washings. The park relies on a "grass roots" policy that encourages park visitors to take out more trash than they bring in.  Organization such as the Friends of Padre have removed over 2,000 tons of trash at their yearly Billy Sandifer Big Shell Beach Clean Up the last weekend of February every year.

A study by the park, started in 1994, to analyze the origin of debris, titled the PAIS Marine Debris Point Source Investigation. The park began collecting data in 1998 to catalogue and remove debris from {{convert|16|mi|km}} of beach. Currently the park has collected over 1,000 days of data for the project, covering a collective area of over {{convert|16800|mi|km}} of shoreline surveyed. This study is one of the first long-term and comprehensive marine debris research projects started within the United States. From its result the vast majority of the debris is traced to the commercial shrimping industry while approximately 14% comes from the offshore oil and gas industry.<ref>[http://www.nps.gov/pais/naturescience/shoreline-trash.htm Padre Island National Seashore - Shoreline Trash (U.S. National Park Service)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Naturalist and fishing guide Billy Sandifer founded an annual beach cleanup at the park in 1996. The cleanup targets the Big Shell Beach portion of the island, around the 20-25 mile marker. In 2007, Sandifer established the Friends of Padre, a [[non-profit association]] to fund park projects and to organize the cleanup.<ref name=sikes/><ref name="Friends of Padre">{{Cite web |title=Friends of Padre |url=https://www.friendsofpadre.com/ |access-date=2023-03-15 |website=Friends of Padre Inc}}</ref>