HAMPTON – On Nov. 16, Merrimack High School’s FIRST Robotics team, Chop Shop 166, organized a cleanup at North Hampton Beach and removed 160 pounds of trash.

“Our mission as a FIRST team is not only to better our community through education, but through the environment,” said Katie, outreach lead for Chop Shop 166. “We strive to inspire the next generation, but to reach their full potential they need a clean and healthy environment to thrive in.”

According to The Ocean Cleanup, there is a garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean that is “twice the size of Texas”.

“As a mentor of 166 and somebody who’s been raised with an ethos of leaving the land better than we found it, I think it’s important to do what we can to go above and beyond when it comes to the environment,” said Layth Juma, a mentor of Chop Shop 166. “We as a team need to set an example to other non-profits, teams, and communities to protect our lands for the next generation.”

“While pollution prevention is our ultimate goal, we’re still committed to cleaning beaches as long as litter exists,” stated the Blue Ocean Society. “With the help of volunteers, we’ve removed over 195,000 pounds of litter from our local beaches since 2001.”

Chop Shop 166 was joined by the Blue Ocean Society and fellow FRC teams 131 and CHAOS of Manchester as well as 6324 and The Blue Devils of Salem.