This Sunday is World Oceans Day, and locals are taking action by rolling up their sleeves to beautify the Central Coast’s beaches.
EcoSlo partnered with the Central Coast Aquarium to host the second World Oceans Day cleanup, where about a hundred people gathered to clean Avila Beach and areas around it.
I love the area. Why not come down and try and do what you can? said volunteer Tyler Rey.
Volunteers headed to the Bob Jones Trail, Avila Beach, Fishermans Beach, and Olde Port Beach armed with trash bags, gloves, and data cards.
With the data cards, we input all of that information into the tides database at the end of the cleanups,” said volunteer coordinator Ellie Howell. “I’m going to total everything that we find today and just detail all of that out in there.
Howell says the information can be used to create policy change, like what happened with our state’s plastic bag ban.
Once volunteers turn in their trash, EcoSlo sorts it and ensures that everything is properly disposed of or recycled.
When it comes to recycling, Howell says there is some important information that the public should know:
Jars that are too dirty cannot be recycled. They have to be rinsed before being placed in the recycling bin. San Luis Obispo County only recycles hard plastics not soft plastics meaning that plastic bags cannot be recycled. Lids have to be attached to a bottle to be recycled.
This year’s event was funded by the Avila Beach Community Foundation.
Organizers say they hope to make the World Oceans Day cleanup an annual event on the Central Coast.
Volunteers tell KSBY that they get to enjoy the weekend outside while helping to make a difference in the community.
Sometimes we do see trash out here, but its really good to actually be able to do something about it,” says volunteer Tatum Miller.
The group collected 128 pounds of trash and 13 pounds of recyclables on Saturday.