Volunteers Scour Beach for Trash
Volunteers gathered for the annual International Coastal Clean-up Day to clear beaches of trash and debris
On a cloudy Saturday morning, members and leaders of beach clean-up organizations, community members, and students gathered to clean up Santa Monica Beach. As divers surged the dark, muddy waters directly under Santa Monica Pier, volunteers scattered the vast, sandy beach to find any remnants of plastic and trash.
Saturday, Sept. 17 from 9 a.m. to noon marked International Coastal Clean-Up Day, where thousands of volunteers gathered to clear beaches of trash and debris. Heal the Bay, an environmental non-profit dedicated to protecting the coast hosted a Beach Cleanup event, saw over 3,350 volunteers across LA County to remove over 8,500 pounds of trash and debris.
Groups and volunteers registered at tents set up North West of Santa Monica Pier, between lifeguard towers 26 and 28, where they received buckets made of recycled materials and reusable gloves and head off in search of debris and trash. Around three city trash cans were filled with trash collected from the beach.
Besides its vast beach, Santa Monica’s ocean was also scoured for trash. Many divers, including Linda Van Der Linde an advanced Emergency First Response diver, volunteered with the company Eco Dive to help with the clean-up event. “The dive under the pier was actually very surgy. There are a lot of waves today, more than four feet of waves. It was really cloudy, and you couldn’t see. Once you get down there it is really murky, and you’re going side to side, and you are looking for stuff to pick up,” said Van Der Linde.
Once divers picked up any debris, they put it in a bag and carried it back to shore with them. Divers had to be careful to not interrupt the big groups of animals that call the pier their home, like sand sharks and starfish. Van Der Linde and other divers stayed for around 30 to 40 minutes before coming up to shore with several bags full of trash, including technological devices, bottles, toys, film, clothes, and much more.
The coastal-wide clean-up comes as the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health periodically issues warnings for bacteria levels in ocean water that exceed State health standards. The department urges people to use caution if they plan to come in contact with ocean water and advised against swimming near the Santa Monica Pier.
"We have a beach report card, and it’s a way to see what water quality is before you actually get in the water,” says Jenna Segal, Associate Director of Programs at Heal the Bay aquarium. “Santa Monica is heavily trafficked, with 80% of all trash coming from inland.”
Segal outlined the various causes of the increase in bacteria levels. Leading causes of this increase include waste and debris from the Pier, and storm drain runoff containing high levels of bacteria.
“The ways we interact with nature, the beach, the ocean, is really important, in terms of preserving the integrity of our natural environment and creating sustainable practices. But it's not just here on the coast,” said CSUN Sociology Professor David Byons, who worked with students as volunteers for the event. “We know that how we treat the environment in the San Fernando Valley, and L.A., it all ends up on the coast.”
Areas of Santa Monica Beach, farther from the pier, are safe for swimming. Information on beach conditions is available on the L.A. County Department of Public Health’s Website.
