Facts & Figures

It is only through our dedicated site coordinators, volunteers and supporters that the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup can work to tackle shoreline litter and aquatic debris to help protect our shorelines. Take a look at what we’ve achieved to date.

Past Cleanups: Total Results per Year

Year	Registered Sites	Distance Cleaned (km)	Garbage bags	Weight (kg)*	Registrants
2012	1,815	3,102	12,895	136,036	57,442
2011	1,665	3,144	11,794	143,737	56,293
2010	1,219	2,235	11,989	98,071	47,027
2009	1,568	2,457	15,930	160,914	56,916
2008	1,531	2,152	13,202	135,467	63,491
2007	1,240	1,772	13,473	87,489	52,263
2006	965	1,640	8,867	84,735	40,781
2005	812	1,477	10,383	78,356	36,798
2004	658	1,147	9,319	64,988	30,676
2003	477	771	5,438	49,859	20,015

*Note weights are based on participants’ estimates only

Recovered Litter Items: Breakdown by Province and Activity for 2011

Province	Shoreline and recreational activities		Ocean waterway activities		Smoking related activities		Dumping activities		Medical personal hygiene activities
	n	%	n	%	n	%	n	%	n	%
British Columbia	169,552	42.3	27,477	6.9	193,640	48.3	8,521	2.1	2,140	0.5
Alberta	37,770	49.2	1,385	1.8	35,870	46.7	1,244	1.6	481	0.6
Saskatchewan	7,217	54.5	803	6.1	4,709	35.6	384	2.9	130	1.0
Manitoba	9,531	53.5	1,881	10.6	5,779	32.4	531	3.0	93	0.5
Ontario	195,688	58.6	8,169	2.5	121,127	36.3	4,522	1.4	4,560	1.4
Quebec	30,207	56.3	2,259	4.2	17,898	33.5	1,914	3.6	1,156	2.2
New Brunswick	8,477	56.6	1,554	10.4	2,336	15.6	2,363	15.8	261	1.7
Prince Edward Island	1,658	44.3	1,874	50.0	103	2.8	77	2.1	35	0.9
Nova Scotia	6,565	47.7	1,913	13.9	3,575	26.0	593	4.3	1,111	8.1
Newfoundland and Labrador	10,927	56.5	2,411	12.5	3,968	20.5	1,873	9.7	172	0.9
Nunavut	7,203	72.2	743	7.4	1,510	15.1	385	3.9	142	1.4
Northwest Territories	1,534	52.8	52	1.8	1,290	44.4	22	0.8	10	0.3
Yukon	821	63.6	10	0.8	379	29.4	66	5.1	14	1.1

Canada’s Dirty Dozen List For 2012

2012 Rank	Item	Number of Items Collected
1	Cigarettes/Cigarette Filters	416,955
2	Food Wrappers/Containers	98,835
3	Bags (Plastic)	69,790
4	Caps, Lids	69,725
5	Beverage Bottles (plastic) 2 liters or less	38,202
6	Beverage Cans	37,210
7	Cups, Plates, Forks, Knives, Spoons	34,458
8	Straws, Stirrers	32,338
9	Beverage Bottles (glass)	29,198
10	Bags (paper)	28,315
11	Tobacco Packaging	16,997
12	Building Materials	16,280