Feb. 4 Book Nook by the Bay: Marine Debris

Contact: Emily Stehle, APR
(727) 803-9799, ext. 207
cell (727) 688-7993
estehle@pieraquarium.org
www.pieraquarium.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FEB. 4 BOOK NOOK BY THE BAY
Marine Debris is Serious Business

St. Petersburg, FL (Feb. 1, 2011) – What happens when you throw a candy wrapper and plastic bottle in the gutter? They both become ocean pollution.

February's featured book, All the Way to the Ocean by Joel Harper is the story of James and Issac who disagree about what happens to a throwaway. Issac warns James, who doesn't believe it will go "all the way to the ocean."

There begins the adventure of the two friends as they learn about the harmful effects of storm drain pollution and spread the word to their friends and to school mates.

February 4 Book Nook by the Bay Schedule
10:30am-noon

10:30am	Fresh Fish Theater: family library time and craft activity with this month's Featured Creature, the sea cucumber (a Touch Tank resident)
11:15am	Story Time with a Marine Educator: reading of the book, All the Way to the Ocean by Joel Harper
11:30am	More Fresh Fish Theater craft activity

About Book Nook
The Book Nook by the Bay is a literary event featuring Fresh Fish Theater and craft activity, Featured Creature facts, suggested reading by Youth Services Coordinator Beth Lindsay from the St. Petersburg Public Library System, the aquarium's marine science library and, of course, the reading of books. It is offered the first Saturday of each month and is free with a paid aquarium admission.

The Don CeSar's Beach House Suites is a sponsor of Book Nook by the Bay.

About The Pier Aquarium
Established in 1988, The Pier Aquarium is a private, non-profit aquarium and marine education center located in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida at The Pier. It showcases 17 tanks of live fish and other marine life and educational exhibits on the first and second floors and an outdoor marine laboratory and teaching unit, the Roy G. Harrell, Jr. Education Station, located on the Pier approach.

Its mission is to enhance the public’s understanding of the value and fragility of the local and global marine environment through research, education and personal experiences. The Pier Aquarium serves as the "public face” for the St. Petersburg Ocean Team’s research, innovation and technology. The Ocean Team is a consortium of 14 marine science and oceanographic institutions and environmental research agencies in the Southeast and one of the top such industry clusters in the nation.

More than 65,000 visitors, including 15,000 who participate in our scheduled educational programs, come to The Pier Aquarium annually to attend our Saturday programs, an annual free marine discovery day and Summer Marine Adventures summer camp. Volunteers contribute more than 3,000 hours each year.

The Pier Aquarium has announced a move to John’s Pass Village, Madeira Beach, Florida and expansion to a 12,500 sq. ft. facility called the Secret of the Seas Marine Discovery Center and Aquarium by the end of December 2012.

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