While any litter on the beach is an eyesore, some trash traveled hundreds of miles by land, sea and air to get there.
Balloons riddled a mile stretch of the shoreline in Southampton Village from Coopers Beach westward on Wednesday. In just that short distance, there were upward of 20 balloons, both latex and mylar, sticking out of the sand, along with the plastic string that had kept them earthbound before they were released into the sky.
There were "Happy Birthday," "It's a Boy!", Disney princesses and Spider-man balloons, among other trash on the beach, like polystyrene containers, plastic lids and cigarette butts.
It is unclear if the balloons accumulated at the beach over time, or if most of them washed up during recent severe storms.
Most of the litter there Wednesday was a result of beach-goers who couldn't be bothered to carry off their trash or to use the garbage cans provided at Coopers after having a picnic lunch. But the balloons, in all likelihood, originated elsewhere, when they were released either unintentionally or on purpose because someone wanted to watch them float off into the distance.
Though anecdotal evidence is proof of nothing, it is worth noting that no plastic bags were discovered in the sand Wednesday. Southampton Village banned plastic shopping bags in 2011.
