Annual Coastal Cleanup Day a huge success
The Mendocino Land Trush reports that during this year’s annual cleanup along the coast, 195 volunteers removed an impressive 2,419 pounds of trash from beaches and waterways throughout the County. In a release issued over the weekend, Land Trust manager Nicolet Houtz noted that in the eight years she has participated in Coastal Cleanup Day, she has never been so wet and muddy or had such an enthusiastic group of volunteers.
A group of dedicated volunteers removed 1,389 pounds of trash from the Hare Creek Bridge and
Babcock Beach areas. Members of the Fort Bragg Rotary club were joined by students from the Interact club at Fort Brag High. This year the Mendocino Land Trust organized 19 coastal cleanup sites — 15 inland areas were also cleaned by volunteers working with the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District.
On Monday, site captains reported that 195 participants removed 2,419 POUNDS of trash and recyclables from Mendocino County beaches, the Noyo River, and Hare Creek. Inland, 80 volunteers removed an estimated 900 pounds of trash plus 100 pounds of recyclables from the sites MCRCD coordinated along the Russian River — including a full-sized barbeque.
The Pacific Coast Charter Schools Todd Orenick was the first to report data that showed that the K-12 school removed over 93 cigarette butts during their cleanup from the Moat Creek Beach area in Point Area. Orenick, a teacher at the charter school, said that the cleanup is a culmination of a week-long study about pollution and was used as a jumping-off point for kids to discuss.
In Noyo Harbor, Jeff Laxier and Cate Hawthorn from Liquid Fusion Kayaking lead a group of 13 kayakers and one small craft from the marina to the bridge and back again. The group removed 500 pounds of trash from the harbor, filling a dumpster donated by Fort Bragg Waste Management. Hawthorne is quoted as saying, “It was so refreshing to find less single-use plastic this year. Very few plastic bags. Of course, some beverage bottles but not nearly as many of the plastic cups and food containers we found in the past.”
The local Surfrider Chapter cleaned the Ward Avenue area at Mackerricher State Park and was joined by teens from the Willits High School PeaceWorks!
Environmental Club. The group was looking for micro trash, which refers to small bits of garbage such as broken glass, bottle caps, and other smaller broken down pieces of debris, all of which pose a severe threat to natural ecosystems. Diane Duncan has captained the cleanup at this site for many years, said, “I felt almost bad that there wasn’t more trash for them to pick up! But really this shows people are taking very good care of the beaches at MacKerricher, so we should feel good about that.”
This year’s cleanup is the 18th year that the Mendocino Land Trush coordinated the annual Coastal Cleanup Day in Mendocino County.
“We are so pleased at the level of commitment people in our community have for Coastal Cleanup Day. Some site captains have been organizing for decades, and many participate every single year,” says Amy Wolitzer, the Outreach Coordinator for Mendocino Land Trust.
“When we found out rain was predicted we were nervous people were going to want to cancel, but everyone was committed to hosting their cleanups rain or shine and removing as much trash as they could before winter storms can wash it out to sea. And there were many volunteers from the community who were eager to help,” she added.
Coastal Cleanup Day happens on the third Saturday of every September, rain or shine. Email info@ mendocinolandtrust.org for more information or call the Mendocino Land Trust office at (707) 9620470.