Heal the Bay Helping to Clean Beaches Year-Round

Nobody likes trash on the beach! These volunteers are working to keep the Los Angeles coasts clean year-round. 

Hawthorne residents took to the streets to pick up trash that could end up on L.A.'s beaches. While many Angelenos volunteer on Coastal Cleanup Day, these volunteers give time throughout the year to keep the trash off the sand. 

On Sept. 20 each year, Heal the Bay hosts Coastal Cleanup Day, the largest volunteer day on the planet. Heal the Bay coordinates cleanups at more than 50 beach, inland, dive, and kyak sites across Los Angeles County. The cities weigh the trash, separating styrofoam and plastic bags and weighing them to determine the amount of trash on the beaches.

Heal the Bay was able to show the L.A. City Council the effect that plastic bags had on the beaches, leading to the city-wide ban on plastic bags in 2013. Heal the Bay is now rallying support for a state-wide ban on plastic bags through their campaign Ban the Bag.