The Garbage That Ends Up on Jersey Shore Beaches

A full pickle jar, a sink and vaping pods are among the stranger items part of the "Roster of the Ridiculous" that were found during the 2019 beach sweeps by an environmental group.

Jones said the beach sweeps is less of a cleanup and more of a snapshot to capture data about what is happening on the beach on the days of the beach sweeps.

The group said the data provides hard evidence about the scope and magnitude of the marine debris problem which the group hopes will prompt legislation and policy to reduce the sources.

Volunteer Brianne Sinks found a $6,000 diamond engagement ring during the October Beach Sweep which had been lost two years ago. Sink was able to return the ring with help from Bentley Jewelers of Wall Township, according to the report.

The COVID-19 public health emergency, which has led many shore communities to close their beaches discourage gatherings, has also caused spring Beach Sweeps to be canceled.

"We're very disappointed about that," Jones said. "From internal memory, we can only remember one other time that the sweeps had to be canceled. What's really disappointing is that we won't be able to collect all this data to keep track of these trends."