New York ( CNN ) -- Volunteers toiled for hours on Friday cleaning mostly man-made debris from a New York coastline , the scattered religious offerings from a growing Hindu population in Queens . The group has drawn concern among local conservationists after leaving offerings -- clothing , statues , plastic flowers and other items -- along the Gateway National Recreation Area near Jamaica Bay . `` I was appalled to see the condition of the place , '' said New Yorker Nagassar Ramgarib , a practicing Hindu . `` It was really disgustingly filthy . '' Many defend the practice , considered a sacred Hindu tradition . Millions of worshippers leave offerings to the gods at India 's Ganges river each year . `` There are times when we feel that we need to come to the sea , to offer flowers and of course ... material things because we feel that flowers , they just go , '' said Esther J. Ramdeen , a spokeswoman for the East Elmhurst temple , Shiva Mandir , who helped organize Friday 's clean-up . `` We see God in the sea , '' she said . What remains is a standoff between those who insist on practicing their beliefs unfettered and environmentalists who are trying to preserve the area for local marine life . Affected by the buildup and inspired by a park ranger who helped remove debris with him several years earlier , Ramgarib returned to his temple to encourage executives and its members to visit the park and see the destruction . `` It is the sea . It is something that we as Hindus worship , '' he told them , `` It is the medium that we use from this life to the after-life . '' Ramgarib warned that if the area was continually polluted , his people could be banned . Kathy Krause , a supervisory park ranger of the Gateway National Recreation Area who attended the clean-up , agrees the religious practices have put definite pressure on the bay . `` It 's a rich biodiverse ecosystem but it 's definitively suffering some major environmental issues , '' Krause said . These extra items left on the bay are one of its biggest threats for Jamaica Bay , a national park that 's home to more than 325 species of birds , invertebrates and sea life , Krause said . `` They release nutrients into the bay that do n't belong there , and it exacerbates the water pollution problem we have , '' she said . Volunteers picking under rocks and through grass Friday filled garbage bags of bottles , coconut shells , figurines and yards of cloth , all of which the group says they will try to recycle . Ramdeen said the fabric , pulled and sometimes ripped from beneath the shoreline , is just another part of the material possessions offered to the gods . `` You see that the colors we 're picking up are very pretty colors , '' she said `` and we as Hindus think that we should give God the best . '' The material collected by Ramdeen 's organization is washed before being sent back to India as clothing . `` So it was kind of a recycling process , '' she said of their efforts . `` It 's amazing , '' Krause said of the group 's efforts . `` This just shows such wonderful turnout from the local community . ''
Conservationists , park rangers concerned about water pollution . Hindus say it 's religious tradition to bring items to bodies of water . Cloth will be recycled , volunteer says .