Walking barefoot on the beach may one day be a luxury once enjoyed by a bygone generation. Broken glass bottles, cigarette butts and even engine parts, which lay strewn along San Diego shores and waterways, will pose an ever-increasing threat to the health and safety of future generations.
Luckily, I Love a Clean San Diego will host its fifth annual Creek to Bay Cleanup on Saturday, April 28, from 9 a.m. to noon. The county-wide effort brings thousands of the concerned and conscientious together every year to not only raise awareness about the pollution in the county’s watershed regions but also to actually do something about it, said Morgan Justice-Black, event coordinator for I Love a Clean San Diego.
The cleanup attracts thousands of people at more than 50 inland and coastal sites to remind people that inland pollution leads to beach pollution and that it takes a massive community effort to keep the region’s resources clean, Justice-Black said.
Plastic bags, safety gloves and tools will be provided for volunteers at each of the sites, she said. Volunteers are encouraged to register online for the nearest cleanup site, at www.creektobay.org, to ensure that enough tools and supplies will be available, she said.
“It recognizes the need for cleanup in all the communities in the county,” Justice-Black said of the countywide push. “Often people just concentrate on the beaches.”
Belmont Park serves as this year’s event center, with prize raffles, T-shirts for participants and a scheduled appearance by event mascot Captain Wettiquette, a giant water droplet. Captain Wettiquette reminds people that habits, good and bad, have an effect on water quality at area beaches, Justice-Black said.
I Love a Clean San Diego has partnered with several large organizations, including San Diego Coastkeeper, the Sierra Club and the San Diego River Park Foundation, to mobilize many hands to help clean up, Justice-Black said.
However, the effort relies mainly on individual volunteers from the community who roll up their sleeves and do their part.
Amy Kangleon, a site captain, lends out several kayaks every year for the La Jolla Shores beach kayak cleanup. Kangleon, who owns Hike, Bike, Kayak on Avenida de la Playa, said she had about 30 volunteers show up last year.
Kangleon opens her business to the yearly event to emphasize the role of community service in keeping La Jolla Shores clean for everyone to enjoy, she said.
As volunteers trickle in, they receive a crash-course in kayaking and using equipment before they cast off to clean the waters, she said. Kayaks are limited to the first 24 volunteers, according to the registration Web page.
“People don’t have to have experience, even if they haven’t done it before, so don’t be afraid,” she said.
Although the site only collects about two bags of trash, such as snorkeling equipment and disposable cameras, the effort goes a long way toward improving the quality of the natural resource, she said.
Protecting these natural resources for the future generations is a primary motivation for site captain and community volunteer Claudia Guitarez, who helped organize the La Jolla Shores beach inland cleanup. Guitarez will help lead the effort starting at Kellogg Park at 9 a.m., she said.
Founder of the grassroots organization Envirockers, Guitarez said she likes volunteering at cleanup events because of the sense of personal satisfaction that comes from protecting the beaches and shores for future generations.
It was her 5-year-old niece who inspired Guitarez’s passion for volunteering at cleanup events, she said. Every time her niece played at the beach or tried to build a sandcastle, she kept unearthing cigarette butts and trash, Guitarez said.
“Our future is in junk,” Guitarez said. “Our future is playing with trash and pollution.”
Driven by her passion to preserve the natural beauty of the region, Guitarez said she would not hesitate to take trash back to someone she sees littering. She doesn’t use violence, but she does remind litterbugs that people are watching and that litter affects everybody, she said.
“Our precious beaches, that’s what San Diego is known for. So if we leave them trashed, what pride do we have in that?” she said.
As founder and president of Envirockers, Guitarez wants to dispel myths about environmentalists that have been attached to labels and stereotypes, she said. By combining environmentalism with progressive rock music, she shatters the notion that being concerned about the environment translates into “tree-hugger,” hippie or vegan, she said.
The native San Diegan and avid environmentalist has worked with organizations such as San Diego Surfrider and I Love a Clean San Diego at past Creek to Bay events and said she hopes her behavior sets an example for others.
I Love a Clean San Diego started in the 1950s as the San Diego War Against Litter Committee, with the goal of getting rid of litter in the region, Justice-Black said. “I love a clean San Diego” was its slogan until the organization took the name in 1989. I Love a Clean San Diego educates the community through outreach, community involvement and providing resources for properly disposing of hazardous materials, such as car batteries and used motor oil, Justice-Black said. For more information, visit www.ilacsd.org.