Keep The Ocean Ocean (KTOO)

Keep The Ocean Ocean (KTOO) is one of Rec+Safe's conservation partners, and its name says it all: the ocean should stay an ocean, not a dump for plastic, fuel, sewage and lost gear. Every stream, river and lake drains toward the sea, so keeping the ocean an ocean starts wherever you get wet, whether that's a backyard creek, a cottage lake or a coral reef.

Why It Matters

  • The ocean covers about 71% of the earth's surface and produces an estimated half or more of the oxygen we breathe, from tiny plankton near the surface. It also soaks up much of the heat and carbon dioxide we add to the air.
  • Fresh water is scarce. Less than 3% of the earth's water is fresh, and most of that is locked in ice and underground. Lakes, rivers and streams supply drinking water, fish, wildlife habitat and much of our recreation.
  • It's all connected. What goes into a storm drain, a ditch or a stream ends up in a lake, a river and eventually the sea.
  • Clean water is safer water. Broken glass, lost hooks, sewage and toxic algae are hazards to people and pets as well as wildlife.

Top 10 Ways to Keep the Ocean Ocean

  1. Pack it in, pack it out, and pick up one more. Bring a bag for trash and take home everything you brought, plus at least one piece of litter you find. Cigarette butts, bottle caps and food wrappers are among the most common items picked up in shoreline cleanups.
  2. Cut single-use plastic. Carry a refillable water bottle, reusable bags and containers. Plastic doesn't break down; it breaks up into microplastics that fish, birds and people end up eating. Never release balloons, which often come down in the water.
  3. Leave no fishing line or gear behind. Monofilament line can last for hundreds of years and entangles birds, turtles and seals. Use the line recycling bins at marinas and launches, or cut old line into short pieces before putting it in the trash. Retrieve snagged lures when it's safe, and consider lead-free sinkers and jigs: loons and other waterbirds die from swallowing lead, and small lead tackle is banned in Canada's national parks and national wildlife areas.
  4. Clean, Drain, Dry to stop invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels and Eurasian watermilfoil. Clean plants, animals and mud off your boat, trailer, paddles and gear; drain all water from the bilge, live wells, ballast tanks and coolers; and dry everything completely before you use it in another lake or river. Several provinces and states require you to pull your drain plug while trailering and to stop at watercraft inspection stations.
  5. Keep fuel and oil out of the water. Fuel up slowly with an absorbent pad under the nozzle, and don't top off: fill to about 90% to leave room for expansion. Keep your engine tuned and an oil-absorbing pad in the bilge. Never use soap on a sheen; it only hides the spill. Report spills: in Canada, to the Canadian Coast Guard on VHF channel 16 or your province's spill line; in the U.S., to the National Response Center at 1-800-424-8802.
  6. Handle sewage the right way. Use pump-out stations and shore washrooms. Untreated sewage can't legally be dumped near shore in Canada or the U.S., and many lakes, rivers and harbours are no-discharge zones.
  7. Give wildlife space. Don't feed, chase or touch wildlife. Canada's rules keep boats at least 100 m from most whales, dolphins and porpoises, and farther from some, such as killer whales off British Columbia; U.S. rules are similar. Slow down where manatees and sea turtles feed, and keep away from nesting birds and turtle nests on beaches.
  8. Protect reefs and shorelines. Anchor in sand or use a mooring buoy, never on coral or seagrass. Don't stand on or touch coral, and wear reef-safe sunscreen or a rash guard; Hawaii bans sunscreens with oxybenzone and octinoxate. Stay on trails and boardwalks across dunes and marshes, and keep your wake down near shore, where it erodes banks and swamps nests.
  9. Fish and eat seafood sustainably. Know the limits, sizes and seasons. For catch-and-release, wet your hands, keep the fish in the water and use barbless hooks. When buying seafood, check Ocean Wise in Canada or Seafood Watch in the U.S.
  10. Join a cleanup and speak up. Join the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup or Ocean Conservancy's International Coastal Cleanup, or a local lake, river or stream association. Report pollution, fish kills, algae blooms and injured wildlife to your local environment or wildlife agency.

Lakes, Rivers and Streams

Inland waters face the same problems as the ocean, plus a few of their own. They're smaller, so a single spill, a dumped bait bucket or an eroding bank makes a bigger difference.

  • Only rain down the drain. Most storm drains run straight to the nearest creek, untreated. Never pour oil, paint, antifreeze or chemicals into one; wash your car at a car wash or on the lawn; and pick up after your dog.
  • Go easy on fertilizer. Phosphorus and nitrogen washing off lawns and fields feed algae blooms. Some blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) make toxins that can sicken people and kill pets. If the water looks like pea soup or spilled paint, or has a scum on top, stay out and keep your dog out.
  • Keep a natural shoreline. Native plants, shrubs and trees along the water filter runoff, hold the bank together and shade the water for fish. Leave a strip unmowed at the cottage or the campsite.
  • Look after your septic system. At a cottage or cabin, have the tank inspected and pumped every 3 to 5 years. A failing system leaks sewage and nutrients straight into the lake.
  • Cross streams in the right places. Use bridges and established fords. ATVs, dirt bikes and 4×4s churn mud into the water that smothers fish eggs, so stay out of streams except at designated crossings.
  • Watch your step in spawning season. Trout and salmon lay their eggs in nests of clean gravel called redds, in fall or spring depending on the species. Don't wade through them.
  • Camp, wash and go to the bathroom away from water. Stay at least 60 m (200 ft) from lakes and streams. Carry wash water away, use only a little biodegradable soap, and bury human waste in a hole 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 in.) deep.
  • Never move fish or bait. Don't dump a bait bucket or release live bait, fish or aquarium pets into any water. Put unused bait in the trash.
  • Leave nothing on the ice. Anything left on the ice ends up in the lake at breakup. Take all your trash, fuel and gear home, and remove ice huts before the local removal deadline.
  • Protect wetlands. Marshes and swamps filter water, soak up floods and shelter fish and birds. Paddle around vegetation beds rather than through them, and stay on boardwalks.

It Starts at Home

  • Return unused medicines to a pharmacy instead of flushing them.
  • Take paint, batteries, oil and chemicals to a household hazardous waste depot.
  • Choose products without plastic microbeads (now banned in Canada and the U.S.) and wash synthetic clothing less often, or in a microfibre-catching bag, to cut the fibres that wash out to sea.
  • Use less water, and plant rain gardens or use rain barrels to slow runoff.
  • Bring your own bottle, cup and bags, and recycle what you can.

Safety and Clean Water Go Together

  • After heavy rain, wait 24 to 48 hours before swimming at beaches near towns and cities, when runoff and sewage overflows are at their worst.
  • Watch for posted beach advisories and algae warnings.
  • Wear water shoes where glass, hooks or sharp debris may be hidden.
  • Carry a trash bag in your kit. Add one to your boating safety kit or kayak safety kit, along with an oil-absorbent pad.
  • File a float plan with Scan Your Plan before you head out, so someone knows when to expect you back.

Support the KTOO Fund

The KTOO Waterway Conservation Fund pays for cleanup supplies, fishing line recycling bins, Clean, Drain, Dry education and other work to keep oceans, lakes, rivers and streams clean. Any amount helps.

Donate to the KTOO Fund

Learn More and Get Involved

See also: Conservation, Our Partners, HOST Hawai'i, Scuba & Snorkeling and Fishing Environments.