California Coastal Cleanup Day returns this September for its 42nd year, and organizers expect the state's largest volunteer event to draw more than 50,000 people to hundreds of locations stretching from the shoreline to the Sierra Nevada.
This year's cleanup carries added urgency. A potentially historic El Niño is taking aim at California, and the increased rainfall it brings can wash plastic pollution from creeks and streams into the ocean. Organizers say the event offers a chance to intercept that trash before it causes even greater harm to the coast and the wildlife that depends on it.
The cleanup also coincides with a milestone. The California Coastal Commission, which organizes the annual event, is marking the 50th anniversary of the California Coastal Act.
"As we celebrate the 50th year of the Coastal Act, Coastal Cleanup Day serves as an important reminder that we all need to show up to protect our coast," Executive Director Kate Huckelbridge said. "Year after year, Californians demonstrate their commitment to a clean and healthy coast and ocean, proving that Californians will take action to save our state's iconic shoreline."
The cleanup traditionally takes place on the third Saturday of September — this year, Saturday, Sept. 19 — and now spans all 58 California counties, including inland waterways far from the shore. Since 2020, the commission has also offered self-guided cleanups throughout the month. Last year, more than 40,000 volunteers turned out at over 700 sites on Coastal Cleanup Day itself.
In Los Angeles County, dozens of sites are already organized and short on hands.
"Our local coordinator, Heal the Bay, has organized dozens of sites that are open to volunteers and in need of help," said Eben Schwartz, statewide outreach manager for the commission. Residents can find a site and sign up at healthebay.org. In Santa Monica, the cleanup runs from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.
Last year, just shy of 9,000 volunteers turned out to more than 50 sites across the county, removing over 23,000 pounds of trash and recyclables, Schwartz said. This year he hopes to top 10,000 volunteers — and to see the amount of trash collected fall.
"Our goal every year is to bring more people out to find less trash, which would tell us that our year-round education and prevention efforts are working," Schwartz said.
Statewide, nearly 1.9 million volunteers have removed more than 13,770 tons of trash since the event began in 1985. The most common items are cigarette filters, food wrappers, plastic straws and other utensils.
Whether the underlying trash problem is shrinking is harder to answer, Schwartz said, because the totals depend heavily on how many volunteers show up.
"Looking at averages, we are picking up significantly less per volunteer than we did just 5 to 10 years ago," he said. Still, he added, "it could be that there's more trash out there ... but we're doing a better job of picking it up throughout the year," noting that the commission runs more year-round cleanups than it once did and that weather remains a significant factor.
Policy changes, he said, have made a measurable dent. In 2007, before any local plastic grocery bag bans took effect, those bags made up about 9% of all the trash collected on Coastal Cleanup Day. After more than 100 local bans and a statewide ban, they now account for only about 1%.
"That's a significant change to our otherwise stable data set," Schwartz said. Similar drops have been recorded for cigarette filters on beaches where smoking has been banned.
The reach of the event extends well beyond the coast. Winter rains can flush debris through rivers, creeks and channels for hundreds of miles, meaning volunteers in Sacramento, Riverside and even the Sierra Nevada can help protect the shoreline, organizers said. The commission runs the event with help from hundreds of government and nonprofit partners across the state.
To find the nearest cleanup, visit coastalcleanupday.org, where publicity posters and T-shirts are also available.
The event is presented by the California Coastal Commission and Niagara Cares, with support from Oracle, Nordic Naturals, Klean Kanteen, Longboard Vineyards, the Whale Tail Specialty License Plate, the Protect Our Coast and Oceans Fund, GreenPolly and the California State Parks Foundation. This year's artwork was donated by Phyllis Shafer.
For more information or to find a cleanup site, visit coastalcleanupday.org. Los Angeles County residents can find local sites through Heal the Bay.