Port Tampa Bay, the Propeller Club of Tampa Bay and Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful have announced the second annual Great Port Clean-up. This year’s event is scheduled for Earth Day, Friday April 22, around the waters of Tampa Bay.

Last year’s event, which was the first Great Port Clean-up, won the American Association of Port Authorities’ Lighthouse Award of Excellence for Environmental Enhancement. Nearly 350 port partners and other community volunteers removed more than 19,000 pounds of trash and marine debris from 23 locations in and around the port.

While the majority of the debris was said to originate outside of the port, the port said in a prepared statement that it recognizes its daily connection with local waters and is dedicated to doing its part to eliminate marine debris and support-trash free local waters.

“We remain deeply committed to the health of our area’s waters. We hope to build on the outpouring of interest and support from last year’s event to continue to have substantial impact on our community for years to come,” said Paul Anderson, president and CEO of Port Tampa Bay.

The Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful organization and the Propeller Club of Tampa are partnering with the port on the effort.