One of Chattanooga's youngest environmental advocates was honored this week for his work to protect marine life in the local area.
Cash Daniels, 9, was one of the 20 young people nationwide to receive one of TruStage Insurance Agency's Community Spark Awards. The award recognizes kids age 17 and younger who are actively taking strides to improve their communities through volunteer and community service activities.
"It takes a special person to recognize at a young age that they have the power to make the world a better place," said Susan Sachatello, senior vice president of TruStage. "The Community Spark Awards allow us to shine a spotlight on inspiring young leaders such as Cash, who is helping his community build a brighter future."
Cash - the only recipient from Tennessee - was selected from a pool of 155 nominees because of his "extraordinary" passion for the environment, said Julie Nuernberg, senior communications manager for the agency.
Since January, the 9-year-old has been hosting monthly river cleanups throughout the community to help prevent the effects of pollution from endangering sea life, and ultimately, humans.
"Fish are the lifeline," explained Cash, who lives in the East Brainerd area. "Without fish there would be no Earth, because animals on land feed on fish, and then bigger animals feed on them, and then those animals get ate by us. So we're technically ingesting plastic when we eat those animals."
To emphasize the local impact, Cash pointed to a study conducted by German scientist Andreas Fath during his record-setting 652-mile swim of the Tennessee River last year.
Cash Daniels, 9, poses with buckets used to collect trash during the river cleanups he leads each month. (Contributed photo)The results of the study, released this October, revealed that the Tennessee River contains 80 percent more microplastic than China's Yangtze River, which another study found to be the source of 55 percent of all river-borne plastic entering the ocean. Fath's report attributes the local river's pollution to the region's culture of littering, citizens' lack of involvement in recycling, and the amount of plastic packaging in the U.S.
So far, Cash has done his part to combat the issue by leading trash collecting expeditions to the banks of Harrison Bay, Chickamauga Dam and the Tennessee River, typically with 20 or more volunteers by his side.
During the most recent outing to Harrison Bay earlier this month, the group picked up 150 water bottles and found a patch of land littered with even more.
"We could have emptied all 30 buckets and probably filled them back up in one hour," Cash said. "Every time we go out, it seems like we get more and more."
In addition to the river cleanups, he has also started a business called Conservation Kid, which sells reusable straws, and straw pouches made from recycled materials.
Cash said plastic straws are just as harmful as bottles because they are small enough to get in sea animals' airways.
"People have actually found sea turtles with straws in their noses," he said.
Since starting the enterprise in April, Cash has made about 30-40 sales of his new business's eco-friendly merchandise, with the money raised sent to Florida based environmental charity 1 Piece Each.
Cash Daniels, 9, poses with buckets used to collect trash during the river cleanups he leads each month. (Contributed photo)Cash said he has also worked to encourage restaurant owners to reduce their plastic waste by writing them letters.
His efforts gained attention in June when a letter he sent to Wahlburgers burger chain received a video response from actor Mark Wahlberg, who co-founded the franchise with his brothers. In the video, posted on Instagram, Wahlberg's 8-year-old daughter, Grace, references Cash's letter and pleas for the restaurant to replace its plastic straws with paper straws.
"That would make me happy, too, because I love sea turtles," Grace said in the video.
Cash has furthered his mission to provide education on sustainability, pollution and single-use plastics through outreaches like environmental movie nights. In October, he even dropped by Grace Baptist Academy to teach pre-K students about the risk, cautioning them against the careless disposal of seemingly harmless objects like plastic bags, which are often swallowed by sea turtles because they look like jellyfish when floating in the water, and can lead to death.
In recognition of Cash's efforts, TruStage donated $1,000 to 1 Piece Each on Nov. 27 in support of Giving Tuesday. 1 Piece Each founder Joseph Cover said the money will help the organization conduct over a dozen river cleanups and help power its "No Straws" social media campaign.
To support Cash's efforts or learn more, email theconservationkid@gmail.com.