SANDY HOOK, N.J. (AP) — Condoms, hair extensions, a toilet seat, a pink lawn flamingo and two decorated Christmas trees were among the unusual items volunteers plucked from New Jersey beaches last year.
The Clean Ocean Action environmental group has released its annual tally of trash picked up by volunteers along the state's 127-mile (204-kilometer) coastline.
Plastics accounted for more than 52,000 of the nearly 219,000 items collected last year in spring and fall beach sweeps.
Here's a look at some of what was picked up and recycled or disposed of properly:
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GETTING PERSONAL
Many intimate items made their way onto the sand last summer, including a maxi pad; three adhesive bandages; a set of upper dentures (at what point on the way home did someone notice they had left half their teeth behind); a home pregnancy test (result unknown, but with 193 condoms having been recovered, let's keep fingers crossed); and, for good beach hygiene, a plastic flosser; three toothbrushes and 1,787 tampon applicators.
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BEAUTY AND THE BEACH
There were enough health and beauty items collected last year to start a decently stocked salon, including 24-inch hair extensions, a fake fingernail and a nail polish brush, tweezers, a bar of soap and two lipstick tubes.
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CASHING IN
Some folks left behind more than trash: They left cash. Someone left behind a $10 bill; several gold coins; a rusty quarter, and a New Jersey Lottery ticket.
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BOB THE BEACH BUILDER
You could have started building your own home literally on the beach with some of what was found there, including the lid from a tool box; a bucket of nails; two screwdrivers; two door frames and 5,274 pieces of lumber in varying sizes and condition. Other building materials accounted for an additional 981 pieces of debris.
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DRINK UP
Bottles (9,283), caps, lids and rings (17,675), and cups (3,242) proved New Jerseyans were well hydrated (among other things) on the beach last year.
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SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM
Despite full or partial bans on smoking on many New Jersey beaches (which tend to be haphazardly enforced, at best), cigarette butts continue to litter New Jersey's beaches. Last year, volunteers picked up 12,861 cigarette butts; 2,351 cigar tips; 694 cigarette packs, and 405 lighters.
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CHRISTMAS IN JULY
Three artificial Christmas trees (two of them decorated); a plastic holiday wreath; three plastic flowers and a plastic Easter egg also were plucked from the shore.
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RANDOM WEIRDNESS
Other items recovered from the sands included a telephone book; a toilet seat; three mousetraps; a TV remote control; a roasting pan; a set of chopsticks; and a pink plastic lawn flamingo.
Not all the items were left behind by careless beachgoers; some washed up from sewer system overflows during heavy rain.