Save the Sound’s Cleanup Season Takes Off With Branford's Coastal Litter Pick-up Sept. 13

BRANFORD, CT —Save the Sound’s 2026 Cleanup season is officially underway, with volunteers already turning out at beaches, parks, rivers, and other waterways across the region.

The first cleanup of the season, held August 8 at Fort Trumbull in New London, brought together an enthusiastic group of volunteers who removed 102.6 pounds of litter from the area.

With cleanups scheduled throughout August, September, October, and into November, Save the Sound is inviting people across the region to get outside, give back to their communities, and help protect the Long Island Sound watershed. Upcoming cleanups will take place at locations ranging from beaches and riverbanks to parks and urban waterways, giving volunteers opportunities to make a difference close to home.

Branford's cleanup is set for Sunday, Sept. 13, from 9 a.m. to noon at Branford Point.

Litter that reaches Connecticut’s waterways can threaten wildlife, degrade habitats, and eventually make its way into Long Island Sound. Removing that debris before it enters the water helps create cleaner, healthier shorelines, rivers, parks, and communities.

Save the Sound is also an International Coastal Cleanup Coordinator for Connecticut. The International Coastal Cleanup engages millions of volunteers around the world in removing trash from beaches and waterways and documenting what they find. Since its beginning, more than 19 million volunteers have collected more than 400 million pounds of trash through the global effort.

Volunteers use the Clean Swell app to record the types and amounts of trash collected during cleanups. The information collected provides more than a snapshot of litter in a particular location. Save the Sound uses cleanup data to better understand pollution trends and advocate policy change to reduce pollution at its source.

These unique cleanups give volunteers a chance to experience their local waterways from a different perspective while helping remove litter before it can travel downstream and into Long Island Sound.

The 2026 Cleanup season currently includes more than 70 scheduled volunteer cleanups, 30 of which are open to the public, running into November. Additional opportunities are possible as the season continues.

Community members can find an upcoming cleanup near them and sign up at savethesound.org/2026cleanups.