Trash along Caloosahatchee could pose risk to wildlife; how to report it

Styrofoam was scattered along the Caloosahatchee riverbank near Centennial Park on Thursday, and it’s apparently been there for weeks.

If you see something, say something, and the city has a way to do just that.

We spoke with Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani and he said it’s simple; if this trash gets into the river or the Gulf of Mexico and it’s not going to be good for wildlife.

Chunks of styrofoam, large and small, could be seen in the mangroves. And as we got closer you could see some of it has started to break down into smaller pieces which makes it more difficult to contain.

We’re don’t know where it came from, but Cassani explained the dangers if it gets into the water.

“It does break down into these microscopic particles that can get into fish’s blood and digestive system. Marine mammals will try to eat this stuff, birds will try to eat it. And it doesn’t, it doesn’t really digest, it’s really bad,” he explained.

So we emailed and called the City of Fort Myers public information officer. She got back to us a few hours later and said the sanitation and parks team will collect the styrofoam later in the day.

She also said if anyone sees trash along the river, all you have to do is go to the city’s website HERE and hit the “report a concern section” to submit a new request.