Two of the younger volunteers go over lists of garbage that had been collected. More than 100 students from various schools around the area and their families and teachers came together for a cleanup that yielded more than 80 bags of debris from the vacant lots near the boardwalk and the beach from Beach 29 to Beach 31 Street last Saturday. PS 43 teacher JoAnne Ellis arranged the cleanup as part of the American Littoral Society's International Beach Clean Up.

Also taking part was the Rockaway Waterfront Alliance, which provided 100 percent biodegradable, pink polka dot trash bags. The bags, designed by artist Adrian Kondratowicz, are part of a public art project, "Trash: Any Color You Like."

Working together for a fall cleaning of the beach and vacant lots. JoAnne Ellis, an art teacher at PS 43, and some of her students take time out for a photo during the October 4 cleanup. More than 80 bags of garbage were collected from the beach, empty lots and under the boardwalk, and included chairs, a mattress, pipes, wood and tires among the debris. Above, Volunteers go down to the water's edge to pick up trash on the beach. Below, Students from PS 43 and various other schools collect debris from the lots near the boardwalk from Beach 29 to Beach 31 Street. Photos by Miriam Rosenberg