The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Marine Resources, and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency have been meeting with British Petroleum to announce the availability of training sessions for beach cleanup volunteers this week.
After completion of training, volunteers will be assigned to a beach location in the same county as their training.
Those who attend the 2 p.m. training will be provided with a 4 p.m. meeting point, the 4 p.m. sessions will be given a 6 p.m. meeting point, and the 6 p.m. sessions will be given a 9:00 a.m. meeting point for the next day.
Community training for beach cleanup will be conducted at two Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College campuses as follows:
2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday
Jackson County Campus (Gautier) – Gymnasium
Jefferson Davis Campus (Gulfport) – Room U202
Training at Pearl River Community College Campus:
2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., Wednesday through Friday
Pearl River CC Hancock County Center (Waveland)
This response training is hosted by local elected officials, BP personnel, community organizations, and MGCCC. These training sessions will qualify volunteers to participate in pre-landfall beach cleaning of debris to minimize impact to the beaches and make any post-impact cleanup more efficient.
Federal, state, and private entities are asking any volunteers to attend training to ensure their personal safety and well-being.