Countywide : Beach Cleanup Hit Record Haul in ’92

Trying to find a recliner rocker, a dishwasher or a toaster? Ever think of looking at the beach?

That’s where volunteers found those items and much more when they combed Orange County’s sandy strips and wetlands during a one-day beach cleanup that netted a record haul of trash and debris.

In a report released this week, the California Coastal Commission said 3,989 volunteers picked up 61,145 pounds of trash and 9,106 pounds of recyclables during the annual end-of-summer cleaning of 14 local beaches and wetland areas in September, 1992.

The effort produced better results than the previous year, when 3,485 volunteers picked up 42,571 pounds of trash and 6,058 pounds of recyclables.

Patti Schooley, the county Department of Harbors, Beaches and Parks’ district supervisor for coastal facilities, said the numbers show that waterfront cleanup efforts are working.

“I don’t see those totals as a negative,” Schooley said. “You have more volunteers, expanded areas of cleanup and, hence, you have more trash. I don’t think our beaches are dirty.”

Orange County was one of the state leaders in the amount of trash picked and scooped out of the sand, coming in second only to Alameda County’s 71,400 pounds and just ahead of Contra Costa County’s 47,710 pounds.

Just 16,316 pounds of trash was collected on Los Angeles County’s beaches, even though more volunteers--4,469--turned out there.

Schooley said Orange County’s beaches and wetlands, unlike other coastal areas, receive a lot of debris from flood-control channels and rivers.

The most commonly found item on beaches throughout the state, said Coastal Commission spokeswoman Nicole Breier, was the cigarette butt. The commission even counted them, along with all other bits of litter.

Precisely 147,930 cigarette butts were pulled from the sands of San Diego to the coast of Northern California, along with 68,496 paper pieces, 60,426 plastic foam pieces, 52,982 plastic pieces and 45,668 plastic food bags and wrappers, to name just a few.

Plastic, found in more than half the materials collected, often proves the most dangerous substance, officials said. Wildlife have become tangled in or choked on six-pack rings or mistake plastic items for food.

The statewide beach cleanup traditionally has been held in mid-September. This year, Breier said, the ninth annual event will be moved back to Oct. 2 to allow school groups a better opportunity to participate.

People interested in volunteering can call the Department of Harbors, Beaches and Parks at (714) 723-4511.

Coastal Cleanup

Nearly 4,000 volunteers picked up 61,145 pounds of trash and more than 9,000 pounds of recyclable items during a one-day cleanup of Orange County’s major beaches.

Pounds Pounds Beach of trash recyclable Newport Back Bay 48,000 6,200 Huntington City Beach 8,640 1,890 San Clemente/San Onofre 1,500 500 Doheny State Beach 1,210 105 Newport Beach 515 N/A Salt Creek and Dana Strand 360 50 Sunset Beach 317 277 Laguna Beach 300 N/A Crystal Cove beaches 165 13 Huntington State Beach 88 57 Marine Sciences Institute tide pools 31 7 Bolsa Chica State Beach 19 7 Bolsa Chica Wetlands N/A N/A

N/A: Not available

Source: California Coastal Commission