Coastal Connections outlines Vero Go 0 recycling and cleanup programs for Sebastian

Coastal Connections representatives told the City of Sebastian Natural Resources Board on July 1 that its Vero Go 0 sustainability initiative aims to reduce marine debris by working with local businesses, volunteers and county partners.

The nonprofit’s founder, Kendra Bergman, said Coastal Connections combines education and debris-removal programs to protect sea turtles and coastal habitat. “We’re a 501(c)(3) that you’re gonna learn quite a lot about in just a moment,” Bergman said, introducing staff who described program details.

The presentation matters to Sebastian because the programs are already operating in Indian River County and the group requested further local partnerships and town sponsorships to expand services to Sebastian. Coastal Connections said reducing single-use plastics and trapping fishing line reduces threats to sea turtles and other wildlife.

Coastal Connections described four core elements of Vero Go 0: a retail-film recycling program branded RAP, a fishing-line recycling network, a beach-basket citizen-science program, and recurring coastal cleanups. According to the presentation, the RAP film program collects plastic wrap and film from participating businesses; the collected film is recycled into pellets and sold to Trex to make composite products. The group said the film program has diverted more than 27,000 pounds of film to date and that it hopes to expand into northern Indian River County and Sebastian.

On monofilament, Coastal Connections said the effort to place bright fishing-line recycling tubes at public launches and parks started in October 2024. The presenters said there are 44 fishing-line tubes in the county and that the program has recycled about 33 pounds of monofilament — which the presenters converted in the talk to “about 212 miles” of line if stretched end‑to‑end. The group noted examples of wildlife injury to explain the benefits of removing line from the environment.

For beach users, Coastal Connections described a network of approximately 28 beach-basket stations across Indian River and Brevard counties; the presentation showed seven beach-basket stations installed at Sebastian Inlet State Park. Citizen volunteers can scan QR codes on baskets to report debris quantities and types; some stations include scales for volunteers to weigh collections and enter the data.

Board members asked how effective the fishing-line tubes are and about business participation. A Coastal Connections representative said the tubes are “very effective,” though they sometimes receive contamination from general trash. The presenters said the RAP business program serves a range of retailers (including outlets) and that program volunteers pick up film on schedules tailored to each business (three times per week to on-demand). The program reported 52 active businesses in the county participating in film recycling and described recognition tiers that encourage continued participation.

Coastal Connections also said the nonprofit runs private and public cleanup events and reported more than 28,000 pounds of collected debris removed from beaches and coastal areas since the cleanup program began. The presenters invited the board to consider city sponsorships for some programs and gave a website and an email for follow-up: coastal-connections.org and info@coastal-connections.org. A phone number was read aloud during the meeting but the transcript capture of the number is incomplete.

The board thanked Coastal Connections and discussed potential coordination with the city’s Sustainable Sebastian initiative. No formal city action was taken during the presentation; Coastal Connections left contact information for follow-up and outreach.

Less-critical details: the presenters emphasized individual actions (reduce single-use plastics, use reusable bags and bottles) and local-government roles such as ordinance support and partner services to prevent debris.