Posted on March 7, 2022
The New England District of the United States Army Corps of Engineers is asking people to report yellow plastic tubing on Massachusetts beaches, especially on Cape Cod.
The yellow tubing, called shock tubing, was used by a USACE contractor while they blasted rocks for a $300 million Boston Harbor dredging project to allow new classes of large cargo ships to deliver goods to the New England region with access to Boston ports. The tubing contains no explosive materials.
“Though the contractor was attentive to clean-ups of this tubing after each blast, the deep channel conditions, and frequent flow of vessel traffic in and out of the harbor unfortunately made it impossible to account for all the used shock-tubing. USACE has been in communication with the contractor who is assisting in clean-up efforts,” the corps said in a news release.
The tubing has been reported on Cape Cod beaches since last summer, according to the Cape Cod Times, which added that volunteers cleaning up beaches have collected 2,000 feet of it.
The shock tubing is considered safe for humans to touch, but if its ingested, it can create health problems for birds or other animals, USACE added.
“The presence of the shock tubing debris along coastal areas is an unintended impact that was recently brought to our attention by the Center for Coastal Studies on Cape Cod,” the news release read.
USACE’s contractor, Great Lakes Dock and Dredge, is doing beach clean-ups around the region and is consulting with the Center for Coastal Studies to work collaboratively to remove debris.
“We are also looking at this situation as an opportunity to explore actions that contractors can take to lessen the chances or prevent this from happening in the future,” USACE told MassLive.
Anyone who finds yellow plastic tubing which could possibly be shock tubing, is encouraged to contact, Todd Randall, at (978) 318-8518 or send an email to todd.a.randall@usace.army.mil.
“The New England District is grateful to the Center for Coastal Studies Marine Debris & Plastic Program for bringing to our attention the presence of shock tubing on regional beaches as the health and cleanliness of the marine environment and beaches is of great importance,” the new release read.
