CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) Ellis Pickett has been surfing around the country for 50 years. He's stepped on petroleum-filled sands on beaches in the pre-Environmental Protection Act era.

Although the 63-year-old man has seen improvement in the form of industrial regulations in oceans and marine wildlife conservation projects, he believes the beaches of South Texas have degraded in the form of trash and litter found along the coast.

"It's the shame on our Texas beaches," Pickett said. "It shows how lazy people are."

The Corpus Christi Caller-Times (http://bit.ly/1ai4uDv ) reports Pickett is a member of the Surfrider Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by surfers and dedicated to preserving beaches across the nation. Pickett, a Padre Island National Seashore regular, said apathy leads to plastic bags, glass bottles and other items left on the beach. Items that can be harmful to ocean wildlife.

"In South and Central Texas beaches there are beer cans all over," Pickett said. "People shop at Stripes and just leave their bags there."

Marine debris has proved to be a perennial problem for beach officials, but its source isn't always easy to pinpoint. Currents from the Gulf of Mexico bring in debris from areas ranging from around the country to Mexico, and it can be difficult to differentiate what is left by beach visitors and what came in from abroad.

Juan Rodriguez, chief of interpretation and education at Malaquite Visitor's Center, said trash left behind pales in magnitude to items coming in from the Gulf, which have included oil drums and narcotics.

"I don't think it's a major problem but it could be if it keeps accumulating," Rodriguez said. "More needs to be done, but resources are limited."

Since its inception in 1986, the Adopt-a-Beach program has collected more than 8,500 tons of debris on Texas beaches. In September, its fall cleanup recovered more than 7 tons along 6 miles of the beach.

Items recovered by the volunteer organization range from toys and plastic bottles to a prosthetic leg and cocaine.

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Cleanup in Corpus Christi area targets beaches