By Jarret Liotta
Her burgeoning care for — and education about — the natural world has motivated one local young woman to take stewardship into her own hands.
Sydney O’Brien: cleaning Cockenoe Island is “just kind of satisfying.” (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Jacquelyn O’Brien for WestportNow.com
Sydney O’Brien, a 21-year-old upcoming college senior who was born and raised in Fairfield, has made caring for Westport’s Cockenoe Island the object of her concern.
“I kind of enjoy it,” she said of the many times she has taken it upon herself to walk part of the town-owned, 28-acre island (pronounced “kah-KEE-nee”) one mile off the coast of Westport and collect garbage.
“I know that sounds kind of weird, but it’s just kind of satisfying doing it.”
A biology major at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, who is also doing a minor in animal behavior, she has come to see and appreciate the need for people to take care of the natural world.
In particular, an internship she spent last year studying marine biology in Turks & Caicos drove home a desire to help make the island a healthier place.
“Every summer she insists that we take our boat out to Cockenoe Island for the sole purpose of removing trash that has washed up or (was) left on the island,” said her mother, Deborah O’Brien.
“She is extremely passionate about wildlife and the environment,” she said.
“The Conservation Department has neither the time nor the manpower to patrol the island on a regular basis,” said Alicia Mozian, conservation director, “so the work that Sydney and her family — and others like them — do is much appreciated.”
“Cockenoe Island has a special place in many people’s hearts,” she said. Unfortunately, as it has grown in popularity, it has become more difficult to manage.
“The Conservation Department is trying every year to strike a balance between humans and the many nesting shorebirds that also have found it a wonderful place to start their lives,” Mozian said.
According to Westport resident Tina Green — an avid birder, Audubon Society member and active caretaker for the island — there are currently 16 different species of birds nesting on Cockenoe that are endangered, as well as eight that are considered threatened, per the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection.
The island supports a rookery for great and snowy egrets, Green said, as well as several varieties of herons and the glossy ibis.
“Cockenoe Island is also an important rest stop for migrating birds, especially shorebirds and terns … including red knots, roseate terns and piping plovers,” she said.
Along with pollution, she said another pivotal threat to the health of the birds on the island is visits by dogs, which are too often allowed to roam freely and interfere at nesting areas.
“I am a dog lover,” she said, “but dogs should not be allowed on Cockenoe Island. They are a real threat to nesting birds and to the fragile environment.”
.jpg)
Some of the garbage Sydney collected on Cockenoe Island. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Sydney O’Brien for WestportNow.com
“I have witnessed many people allowing their dogs to run off leash and harass birds,” Green said, “as well as not cleaning up after their pets.”
Mozian said local laws require dogs be on leashes or under owner control at all times on the island, but federal laws regulating threatened and endangered species are stricter and prohibit them within a nesting area.
However, she said, “This is difficult to enforce since there is no island caretaker.”
Like others, Green commended O’Brien’s work to help make things better there by picking up trash.
“I am so happy to hear about a young person independently cleaning up on Cockenoe,” Green said. “It is so important that young people are concerned and take action to preserve and protect our planet.”
“She deserves our respect and gratitude,” she said.
For O’Brien, however, it’s just the logical thing to do.
“I’ve always liked the environment and I guess as a biology student I kind of have to,” she said, describing the bags of garbage she and her family have removed, which have included lots of plastic bottles — in particular one-shot alcohol bottles — balloons, straws, many plastic bags and a great number of empty shotgun shells.
“What is particularly heartening,” Mozian said, “is that a young person such as Sydney has taken this on as her mission.”
“It gives me hope for the future that people in her generation are growing up to really care about our planet.”
