If you’ve gone to the hair salon recently for a little trim, or a major cut, you could have been unknowingly helping out the Gulf Coast oil spill clean up efforts. How, you ask? A nonprofit called Matter of Trust is using human hair and nylons to make mats and booms that will be used to soak up oil from the recent BP spill.

It’s reported that since the oil rig exploded on April 20, 210,00 gallons of oil are
being released into the ocean each day. So, everybody get to the salons now! Currently, Matter of Trust is receiving hair clippings from over 300,000 salons across the U.S., from San Jose, Calif., to Waterbury, Conn. Along with human hair, the organization also uses animal fur which they fashion into booms using nylon stockings to hold them together. Some 450,000 pounds of hair and fur have already been collected. The booms are placed in the water and along beaches to contain the oil and prevent it from spreading.

Matter of Trust, which has been collecting hair and fur since 1998, is also asking for monetary donations, which they will match up to $50,000, to purchase the mesh needed to get the booms onto the beaches along the Gulf Coast. But if you don’t have the cash, just get yourself into the stylists chair for a little trim.