Bermuda Locals Tell Tourists: Stop Stealing Sea Glass

Cruise ship passengers are collecting buckets of sea glass from Bottle Beach in Burmuda, and the locals aren't happy about it.

"Today I was sitting on a bench outside and was horrified to see two cruise ship passengers walking along with enormous plastic bags filled up to the brim with sea glass," one resident told the Royal Gazette, a newspaper in Bermuda. "I was told of two tourists who went to the beach with five-gallon buckets and filled them up and took them back to the ship," she added. "I am so angry I could spit."

Although other beach items like sand, coral, and shells are not allowed to be taken out of Bermuda, sea glass does not have that restriction. The same disgruntled resident said, “I am appalled. Once the sea glass has all gone, that’s it. It’s too terrible.”

Sea glass is made of pieces of glass with edges that have been smoothed out by the wind and waves over time. People often use sea glass to make jewelry or artistic decorations. Though the glass is common around the island, it is not in infinate supply.

In the Royal Gazette article, the woman interviewed said that when she was younger, items like conch shells and sand dollars were in abundance around the Island. As the years have passed, however, these things are more scarce, and she said that she fears the same could be true with sea glass.