NEWPORT BEACH : Surfriders Agitate by Talking Trash

A pile of trash next to the million-dollar beach homes towered over Mike Boudreaux’s head.

Frisbees, Tupperware lids, yellowing newspapers and even a baby’s shoe were part of the massive heap. The trash had accumulated during the recent storms and was being prepared for hauling to a nearby garbage dump.

The trash had made its way to the beach through the county’s elaborate drainage system, which starts in neighborhoods throughout Orange County and ends up in the ocean. Boudreaux and other members of Surfrider Newport had gathered next to the mound Thursday to remind people not to use the ocean as a dumping ground.

“What this amounts to is educating the public that the enemy is us,” Boudreaux said. “People don’t realize that it all ends up here.”

In an effort to get its point across, an army of volunteers armed with brushes and nontoxic paint will soon begin stenciling all 1,900 storm drains in Costa Mesa warning people of the danger.

The signs will remind residents that dumping into the storm drains is like dumping their garbage bags directly into the ocean.

“What is really frustrating is that there is so much Styrofoam that by the time it gets to the beach it is pulverized into tiny pieces and you can’t pick it up,” Boudreaux said. “Our beaches are turning into Styrofoam.”

Surfrider Newport is a chapter of the national Surfrider Foundation, which is made up of surfers, wind sailors, scuba divers and folks who just love the ocean and want to preserve its beauty.

The stenciling program is one of the first projects taken on by the Newport chapter, which started up a few years ago, members said. The group has contacted other cities and hopes to eventually have every storm drain in the county stenciled.

Some of the tips the group gives to keep the ocean clean include not watering sidewalks, cleaning up after pets and not washing cars in driveways. Several chemicals, including pesticides and motor oil, can be washed into the drains through these practices.

“It all gets mixed up into this toxic mess,” said Boudreaux, adding that it can cause illness.

In fact, many environmental organizations urge swimmers not to venture into the water at least three days after a storm because of the runoff. So-called “non-point source pollution” contributes to 80% of the pollution from run-off, members said, adding that during the recent storms more than 1,000 tons of garbage washed onto Orange County’s shores.

As Boudreaux spoke, four plastic foam cups drifted by in the Santa Ana River and into the ocean. Across the water in Huntington Beach, a few more mounds of trash were visible.

The Surfrider members said they realize that they have a lot of educating to do. Most people don’t understand that whatever goes into the storm drains is not treated before it is spit out into the ocean, said member Jon Phillips.

“We just want the light bulb to go on so people know the storm drain ends here,” he said.