Phillippi Creek Cleanup Results
Thank you to everyone who came out to clean up the creek! We were able to collect 299 lbs of trash and 35 lbs of recyclables! We hope everyone had a great time and learned something new about the waterway!
A special thank you goes to the South Gate Community Center for hosting us in their beautiful venue, Almost Heaven Kayak Adventures for providing paddle gear, Sarasota Bay Watch for sorting all of our trash, Zildjian’s Catering for an eco-friendly lunch, and Sarasota County Stormwater for grant funding and staff support!
Read about the event in the Sarasota Herald Tribune.
Come celebrate National Estuaries Week with a paddle cleanup of Phillippi Creek!
Join the Science and Environment Council and Sarasota County in a free paddle cleanup of Phillippi Creek to support National Estuaries Week. Kayaks, cleanup equipment, and lunch will be provided for all volunteers who register. We have a limited number of kayaks, so feel free to bring your own!
Saturday, September 21, 2019
Southgate Community Center
3145 Southgate Cir., Sarasota
9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Did You Know?
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Estuaries are places where freshwater and saltwater mix.
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Estuaries are among the most productive ecosystems in the world.
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Phillippi Creek flows into Sarasota Bay, an estuary that supports over 1,400 different kinds of plants, birds, fish, and wildlife.
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Estuaries reduce greenhouse gases, protect us from storms, filter our rainwater, and stabilize our shorelines.
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National Estuaries Week (Sept 14 – 21) happens every year to celebrate all of the environmental, economic, and recreational benefits our coasts and estuaries provide.
Explore Your Local Waterway By Kayak
Phillippi Creek is Sarasota Bay’s largest freshwater creek. It flows from humble headwaters at Sarasota’s renowned birding hotspot, the Celery Fields, meandering through reflective moments of old Florida, past sleepy suburban backyards, under frenetic commercial corridors to peaceful mangrove stands and oyster beds — where it finally rolls into Roberts Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
Phillippi is a tidal creek, meaning its waters rise and fall with the tide, providing a dynamic mix of habitats for many of our area’s iconic fish and wildlife. As you’re cleaning and paddling, keep an eye out for manatees, snook, mullet, and a variety of other fish and birds that call this creek home.
Manatee eating in Phillippi Creek. Credit: Liz Sanburg
Roseate Spoonbill in Phillippi Creek. Credit: Cathy Houk
More Ways To Explore Phillippi Creek
Can’t make the cleanup this time around? Check out these other ways to discover Phillippi Creek: