San Diego Coastkeeper

23rd Annual California Coastal Cleanup Day

San Diego, CA – As summer winds down after the Labor Day holiday, many San Diegans will be taking part in the 23rd annual California Coastal Cleanup Day on September 15, 2007 from 9 am to noon. Volunteers are expected to come out in record numbers to take part in a statewide and global volunteer effort to cleanup debris plaguing the environment. Families, friends, service groups, and local businesses are all taking action and wrapping up the summer by improving the health of our coastlines and inland areas throughout the county.

On Saturday, September 15th, volunteers can participate at 60 different coastal and inland cleanup sites throughout San Diego County, from the beaches of Tijuana to the trails of Fallbrook. This year’s event strives to improve upon the successes of last year’s event, where a record-breaking 5,850 volunteers removed 196,966 pounds of debris from our waterways, beaches, and inland areas. This event has grown to become one of the world’s largest volunteer events with all 50 states, nearly 70 countries, and more than 358,000 volunteers participating. Since the program started, over 750,000 Californians have removed more than 11 million pounds of trash and debris from 5,000 miles of coastal and inland areas including bays, canyons, parks, and inland shorelines of creeks, rivers and lakes.

This event is unique and invaluable because it leads to clean coastlines worldwide as a part of an International Coastal Cleanup organized by the Ocean Conservancy, while helping to better understand the sources of marine debris. Volunteers keep track of the trash they collect and when submitted, this data becomes part of a report analyzing marine debris from all over the world. Therefore, volunteers are helping to restore their communities while taking part in a worldwide effort to improve the health of the oceans. Morgan Justice-Black, outreach director for I Love A Clean San Diego explains, "Coastal Cleanup Day gives volunteers an opportunity to positively impact their local communities as well as participate in a worldwide environmental study that will lead to lasting solutions to combat pollution."

Reports such as these allow researchers to better identify the sources of marine debris. The California Coastal Commission reports that up to 80% of debris such as cigarette butts and plastic containers are not caused by beachgoers; they actually originate inland and travel to the ocean through wind transport, storm drains, creeks and rivers. This year, coordinators decided to expand the event to include more inland areas, citing that urban runoff is one of the main contributors polluting out oceans and inland cleanups act as great tools to stop pollution at the source. Cleanups in inland areas not only beautify local neighborhoods and communities, but also reduce marine debris from polluting the coastlines. "If we want to keep our precious water ecosystems pristine, everyone in San Diego should do their part," states Danielle Miller, outreach director for San Diego Coastkeeper. "Marine debris poses a serous threat to the animals and humans who depend on our ocean and participating in Coastal Cleanup Day is an easy and fun way for community members to make a difference by reducing this pollution."

This year, San Diego County coordinators have, once again, put an educational twist on the event, allowing kids in kindergarten – 6th grade to participate in a coloring contest where they are asked to draw a non-native species, essentially a hybrid species part animal and part trash. Coordinators hope that the 2nd Annual Coloring Contest will help to educate children on the harmful effects of marine debris. Other exciting plans for this year include cleanup patches for all scouts participating in Coastal Cleanup Day in San Diego.

CCD is organized statewide by the California Coastal Commission and locally coordinated in San Diego County by San Diego Coastkeeper and I Love A Clean San Diego. The countywide event is presented by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors through the support of Supervisor Greg Cox and Supervisor Pam Slater-Price. Coordinators are also pleased to have Sempra Energy and Time Warner Cable as countywide sponsors, 10 News and KPRI as media sponsors and Whole Foods Market as the presenting sponsor statewide. Additional sponsors include: Cymer Inc., the City of San Diego’s Think Blue Program, Digiteers, Vulcan Materials Company – Western Division, Palomar Transit Mix, SeaWorld, Hornblower Cruises and Events, Birch Aquarium, General Dynamics NASSCO, City of La Mesa, J&S Travel, Clif Bar, Fitness and Wellness Insurance and Vitamin Water.

During the Labor Day holiday, San Diego’s scenic beaches and inland areas are inundated with trash and debris. Summer in San Diego takes a toll on our natural resources and Coastal Cleanup Day is a great way for the San Diego community to come together to restore and protect our picturesque beaches and waterways. Volunteers of all ages can make a difference by joining people around the world in expressing their respect for our precious oceans and are encouraged to participate at one of the 60 sites throughout San Diego from 9 am to noon on September 15th. San Diego Coastkeeper and I Love A Clean San Diego will provide all necessary cleanup supplies. Volunteers of all ages can make a difference and are encouraged to get involved in the largest volunteer event in the county, the state, the nation, and the world! Register your group by visiting www.cleanupday.org.

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San Diego Coastkeeper: San Diego Coastkeeper protects the region’s bays, beaches, watersheds and ocean for the people and wildlife that depend on them. We balance community outreach, education, and advocacy to promote stewardship of clean water and a healthy coastal ecosystem. Dedicated to the belief that we all have a right to clean water, Coastkeeper is the largest professional organization dedicated solely to the monitoring and protection of San Diego’s coastal areas and waterways.

I Love A Clean San Diego: Through outreach, community involvement and example, I Love A Clean San Diego leads and educates our community to actively conserve and enhance the environment. As one of San Diego County's oldest and largest environmental education non-profit organizations, ILACSD promotes awareness of environmental issues including resource conservation, waste reduction, recycling, community enhancement, and pollution prevention.