With San Diego’s beaches hosting more than a million visitors each Fourth of July, an unfortunate byproduct is the tons of trash left scattered in the sand by the large crowds.
For the past four years, several groups have been volunteering on the day of and the day after to help clean up the mess.
This year, the San Diego chapter of the Surfrider Foundation hosts its fourth annual Morning After Mess beach cleanup Thursday, July 5, from 8 to 11 a.m. Community volunteers will join Surfrider Foundation at seven cleanup sites throughout the county, including the beach area at the foot of Pacific Beach Drive, Tourmaline and Belmont Park.
Site organizers will hand out safety equipment, tools and trash bags for this year’s volunteers. Volunteers can pre-register by sending an email to [email protected].
Last year Surfrider volunteers cleaned seven beaches and gathered 8,000 pounds of trash, including about 45,000 cigarette butts, according to Ken David, executive committee member of the Surfrider Foundation San Diego chapter.
Although hundreds sign up for the July 5 clean up, pre-registration isn’t a requirement. Some volunteers who happen to be walking past just pick up a trash bag and start helping out, he said. Volunteers under the age of 18 must have their parents sign a liability waiver if they want to volunteer, he said.
“The thing that picks up your spirit is that people get so involved.” David said.
I Love a Clean San Diego (ILCSD) will staff the Belmont Park area of the cleanup.
Event director Morgan Justice-Black said that although this year’s holiday falls on a Wednesday, she still expects about 200 volunteers to come restore the beach to its normal, clean state. ILCSD collaborates with Allied Waste Services to place temporary recycling bins and plastic bags along the beach during that week, she said.
San Diego Coast Keeper also joins the efforts and will host the Ocean Beach Pier clean up site starting at 8 a.m.
Along with placing extra recycling bins along the beach, FreePB.org, has arranged to have about 160 collapsible cardboard trash bins spread throughout Mission Bay and along Ocean Beach, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach, said Jacob Pyle, member of FreePB’s board of directors.
Each bin measures 3-feet by 4-feet and is 6-feet deep.
The boxes display a copy of the most commonly violated beach rules for those tourists who don’t know the law, Pyle said. Large trucks with the department of Parks and Recreation will pick up trash from the containers, he said.
Local business group, EnDev, paid for the boxes. The group owns Bar West, 959 Hornblend St.
FreePB volunteers will also be handing out plastic trash bags and help collect trash on July 4.
Pyle said the group wants to clean up as much debris as possible before the end of the day.
FreePB is also working to remind beachgoers of the rules:
“¢ Alcoholic beverages are allowed only from noon to 8 p.m. There is no alcohol allowed on the boardwalk or public streets at any time.
“¢ Glass bottles or glass containers are not allowed at any time in the beach or park areas.
“¢ Camping is not permitted on the beach or parks.
“¢ Household furniture is not permitted on the beach.
“¢ The use of barriers is not permitted on the beach. This includes ropes, cords, barrier tapes, tents and other similar devices
“¢ Kegs are not permitted on the Fourth of July.
“¢ Fire ring use is permitted from 5 a.m. to midnight. No pallets are allowed, only clean wood can be used. Pallets leave nails in the sand.
“¢ No loud music, stereo or noise. Noise laws are strictly enforced and audio equipment may be impounded.
“¢ Parking lots are closed when full. Please ask for directions to another park or beach area that may not be as crowded.
“¢ Cruising is prohibited.
Andy Field, assistant director at the Park and Recreation department, said city work crews will be at beaches and parks from Saturday, June 30, through Friday, July 6 from 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
“It’s a heavy use period and a lot of fun for our park visitors, and we look forward to everyone enjoying their Fourth of July holiday,” Field said.