Tag: creek to bay

Gardeners come together at Creek to Bay

Today, we would like to highlight yet another amazing Creek to Bay site captain team! Recently, our Development and Marketing Coordinator, Sarah, sat down with Kaley, a Community Health Specialist from the International Rescue Committee (IRC) who helps lead the New Roots Community Farm program. Read on to learn more about how this diverse group of community members have come together to do much more than pick up litter.

First, let’s start with a little background; what does the IRC do? The International Rescue Committee (IRC) provides health care, infrastructure, learning and economic support to people from around the world whose lives and livelihoods have been uprooted due to conflicts and disasters. Every year, the IRC resettles thousands of refugees in 22 U.S. cities, including San Diego, in efforts to help people, “survive, recover, and gain control of their future.” (www.rescue.org)
One of their most popular programs, the New Roots Community Farm, helps promote food security for approximately 90 refugee families who reside in the City Heights area. Each family has a plot where they plant, maintain and harvest food that they bring home to their families. They even have a booth at the City Heights Farmer’s Market each Saturday, as well, where farmers can sell their produce to bring in extra income for their families.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvmA3pEX-Ak]
But the IRC’s reach doesn’t stop there. About three years ago, the New Roots team was introduced to ILACSD through a combined partnership with Ground Works San Diego – Chollas Creek and Linda Pennington; both of which are longstanding ILACSD supporters and advocates for the well-being of City Heights and Chollas Creek. Their collaboration was a natural fit because a portion of Chollas Creek, a 32 mile natural waterway and drainage system, runs along the backside of the New Roots Community Farm. Unfortunately, the creek has been known to attract illegal dumping and litter so when it rains those pollutants move downstream impacting several neighborhoods along the way.

When asked, “What motivated your team to volunteer as site captains?” Kaley replied, without hesitation, “The free dumpster” which may seem like a comedic response but she further explained that ILACSD’s support, training and cleanup materials were great incentives to join. Additionally, her team was motivated by the fact that having pollution near a growing garden is not only unsightly, but could eventually lead to health issues. Thanks to this collaboration, the team at New Roots Community Farm now hosts quarterly cleanups in addition to their involvement with Creek to Bay and Coastal Cleanup Day, ensuring a healthy and safe garden for all to enjoy!

IRC garden - site capt blog — The New Roots Community Farm located in City Heights is located on a 2 1/2 acre lot and provides 90 families with individual plots to feed their families.

Ensuring safe food is not the only focus for this cleanup site. Although 90 families have plots at the garden, they often don’t see one another. Creek to Bay helps bring together one of San Diego’s most diverse communities, consisting of about dozens of different cultures and ethnicities, to enhance their local environment. It also provides them with a safe outlet to explore areas outside of the gardens. Since being introduced to I Love A Clean San Diego, volunteers have developed a native plants garden, walking paths, and removed pollutants from the creek bed. Above all else, the garden and Creek to Bay has helped to provide the gardeners with a greater connection to their new home in San Diego.

Join Kaley and her team at the New Roots Community Garden cleanup site in City Heights or choose from our other 105 sites at www.CreektoBay.org!

Kicking off Creek to Bay registration!

It’s one of our favorite days of the year...the day that Creek to Bay volunteer registration officially begins!

Plan to spend the morning of April 25th with ILACSD staff and thousands of other volunteers from across San Diego County to protect and enhance San Diego’s treasured natural spaces. But don’t take our word for it. Read on to hear from one of our newest site captain teams, the Trails Committee of San Elijo Hills from San Marcos!

Once upon a time, there was a group of concerned residents who recognized a growing litter problem in their community. Instead of turning a blind eye, they chose to band together to protect their neighborhood by hosting cleanups. They called themselves the Trails Committee of San Elijo Hills. Soon after forming, they realized that they needed some help to get their vision off the ground. So Crystal, a member of the Trails Committee of San Elijo Hills, and her team turned to ILACSD for guidance and supplies.

In a recent conversation with ILACSD, Crystal shared that “The Trails Committee of San Elijo Hills is just a small group of dedicated community members. Without I Love A Clean San Diego, pulling off a cleanup of this magnitude would have been a huge effort.”

San Elijo Hills Trails — In Crystal’s words: “ILACSD is already so good at coordinating cleanups” and “they make it so easy” to get involved that it was a no-brainer to volunteer for Creek to Bay.

Well, this little group of concerned citizens organized their first cleanup last year as part of ILACSD’s annual Creek to Bay Cleanup. The results? To their surprise, more than 100 people showed up to clean up all 18 miles of the San Elijo Hills trails! What originally started as a small group of concerned community members grew almost ten-fold overnight. When asked about her favorite part of the Creek to Bay Cleanup was, Crystal replied that she enjoys connecting with others that are passionate about protecting the environment and seeing them get excited about what they are able to accomplish in just three hours.

Crystal also shared with us that cleanups like Creek to Bay are important for two reasons:

1) Volunteers physically remove the trash – instantly making our environment better.

2) The cleanups bring awareness and educate others about the problems that littering causes – encouraging community members to think twice before littering has a lasting impact.

Volunteers of all ages, including youth, are encouraged to participate!

For more information and to register for Creek to Bay, please visit www.CreektoBay.org! If you’re feeling on the fence, take these words of encouragement from Crystal, “Three hours seems like a lot of time to give on a Saturday morning, but by the end you’ll surprise yourself. You’ll have a lot of fun and you’ll also gain a greater sense of pride for your community.”

San Diego County is connected through a network of watersheds and the San Elijo Hills Trails of San Marcos are no different. Trash flows from the trails, to Copper Creek, into San Elijo Lagoon in Encinitas (another C2B cleanup site!) and eventually out to the ocean!

community cleanup countywide creek to bay registration San Diego county San Elijo Hills San Marcos Trails Committee of San Elijo Hills volunteer

Profiling ILACSD’s longest-serving site captains!

Mindy & Jane - Dog Beach Dog Wash — Mindy & Jane, Dog Beach Dog Wash owners, with Juno, Chipper & Zydeco.

Today’s blog is a special one. Two of our longest standing supporters, Jane Donley and Mindy Pellissier, graciously put together these thoughtful answers about their experience as site captains and what they do year-round to help protect OB’s Dog Beach. Read on to learn more about their passion for a clean San Diego and why they want you to join them for Creek to Bay, happening April 25th!

Prior to opening the Dog Wash, Mindy & I got our first dog in Feb. 1989 and began visiting Dog Beach daily. The Ocean Beach Town Council had adopted Dog Beach in 1972 (when it officially became an off-leash area) for cleanups 3-4 times a year. As members of the Town Council, we became involved in the cleanups and in 1993 (when opening Dog Beach Dog Wash) took over as captains and organizers of the cleanups.

In 1996, we organized Friends of Dog Beach to cleanup and care for Dog Beach, conducting bi-weekly cleanups with several hundred volunteers. Currently we conduct monthly cleanups (every second Saturday from 9 to 11 am) in addition to Creek to Bay, Morning After Mess on July 5th, and Coastal Cleanup Day. We installed 12 stainless steel containers for dog bags with help from County Supervisor Greg Cox and the OB Community Development Corporation in 2002, and currently provide more than 10,000 free poop bags a week to keep Dog Beach clean.

DBDW - 2009 — Throw back to 2009 at one of OB Dog Beach’s monthly cleanups!

What brings us back?

We value Dog Beach (40+ acres of sand where the San Diego River meets the Pacific Ocean) for the joy it brings to the 10,000 dogs who visit each week, the social benefits to dogs and human guardians, and the love and respect we have for the natural habitat and fresh air. We are committed to improving the water quality of the river and ocean, and maintaining the beach as a desired destination for nature- and dog-lovers, and will always support organizations and individuals who share these values.

SD River meets the Pacific Ocean — OB’s Dog Beach – 40+ acres of sand where the San Diego River meets the Pacific Ocean.

Why should others consider becoming site captains?

The best part of being a site captain is the vested interest in protecting and enhancing the beauty and health of a “great place” be it a canyon, creek, back alley or beach. Over years one can see improvements, and socializing with neighbors for a good cause improves everyone’s quality of life. Inspiring others, especially younger generations, to respect and enhance the environment is another major goal.

DBDW - CCD14 — Volunteers, including Councilmember Lori Zapf and ILACSD Director Bill Haines, at last year’s Coastal Cleanup Day at Dog Beach.

Aside from cleanups, how else does Dog Beach Dog Wash protect the environment?

In our private lives, and at Dog Beach Dog Wash, we continually seek ways to protect and enhance the environment. We’ve planted trees, and conserve water with low-flow devices, synthetic lawn and low-water plants. We use recycled and recyclable paper products, green cleaning products, “Energy Star” appliances, and sell healthy organic dog treats and dog/cat collars and leashes made from soy and recycled plastic bottles. Because of potential zoonotic diseases, we cannot use recycled water; we looked into that.

We also donate our used towels and dog accessories to local animal shelters to be re-used for dogs & cats awaiting forever homes. We support organizations that share our values for sustaining and improving the environment, including I Love A Clean San Diego, Think Blue, Surfrider, Coastkeeper, and the San Diego River Park Foundation.

DBDW and OB sacred heart - 4.12 — Student volunteers from OB Sacred Heart Academy – Earth Day Cleanup 2012

Mark your calendars – registration opens Wednesday, April 1st! You’ll have the opportunity to choose from 100+ cleanup sites across San Diego County, including Jane & Mindy’s site in OB! For more information & to register, please visit www.CreektoBay.org. In a matter of only a couple hours, you’ll be able to show pride for your community working along side neighbors to ensure a safe and clean environment for current and future San Diegans!

creek to bay Dog Beach Dog Beach Dog Wash dog-lovers Friends of Dog Beach Ocean Beach San Diego Coastkeeper San Diego River Park supervisor greg cox Surfider think blue

Local Businesses Step Up for Creek2Bay

Today’s blog comes from our Community Programs Manager, Lexi! If you have ever volunteered for one of our cleanups there is a good chance you two have crossed paths! In addition to community cleanups, she also helps coordinate our two countywide cleanups, Creek to Bay and Coastal Cleanup Day. Creek to Bay is the first countywide cleanup of the year and there will be close to 100 cleanup sites across San Diego County! Read on to learn more about how local businesses have stepped up to protect and conserve our environment!

Preparations for our Earth Month volunteer event, the Creek to Bay Cleanup, are in full swing here at I Love A Clean San Diego. With 95 cleanup and beautification projects happening throughout San Diego County on April 25, it’s certainly a busy time around our office!

This event would not be possible without the support of some of our business partners in the community. We’d like to take this opportunity to recognize some of these groups that help make this event a success.

BoxedGreen

One of our newest partners for this event is local startup BoxedGreen. This eco-friendly company is helping San Diegans reduce their environmental impact by offering gently used cardboard boxes for $1 each. Through unique partnerships with local businesses, BoxedGreen connects community members in need of boxes with nearby retailers who have boxes to spare.

BoxedGreen will be donating a portion of the cardboard boxes we use to pack up the cleanup supplies for our 95 different Creek to Bay sites throughout San Diego County. We can’t wait to put these recycled boxes to good use!

RECON Environmental, Inc.
Maple Canyon in the Park West neighborhood of San Diego looks quite a bit different now than it did 4 years ago, thanks in large part to cleanup efforts led by a team from RECON Environmental, Inc. RECON, a local environmental services firm, wanted to use its expertise in habitat restoration to revitalize a canyon in their neighborhood through community involvement.

RECON staff began serving as site captains for this canyon in 2011, focusing first on large trash items that had been illegally dumped years ago. Once these items were properly disposed of, RECON began to focus on habitat restoration by removing invasive plants and slowly returning the canyon to its native state of coastal sage scrub.

Maple Canyon cleanup led by RECON Environmental, Inc.

To keep the canyon looking great between our countywide cleanup efforts (Creek to Bay in April and Coastal Cleanup Day in September), RECON also coordinates their own cleanups of the canyon through our Adopt-A-Beach/Adopt-A-Canyon program. RECON is a perfect example of how a company can take action to beautify the environment right in its own backyard!

Sony
For the last several years, we have worked with our friends at Sony to offer a fun photo contest for all of our volunteers. The winner of this year’s contest will receive a brand new Sony Cyber-Shot camera! Last year’s photo contest theme was “Be The Change,” and we received tons of great shots of volunteers beautifying their local communities.

Last year's Sony Photo Contest winner! — Last year’s Sony Photo Contest winner!

And not only is Sony supporting our event by sponsoring the photo contest—they also gather a volunteer team every year to participate at one of our many cleanup sites.

Sony employee volunteer group at Kids' Ocean Day 2015 — Sony employees volunteer with us year-round in addition to our countywide cleanups! Here is a group of Sony volunteers who joined us at Kids’ Ocean Day in February!

Interested in getting your business connected with our Creek to Bay Cleanup? Visit www.CreektoBay.org to find out about how you can get involved! If you’re interested in becoming a sponsor, please download a copy of our sponsorship packet. For more information, please email Natalie, Senior Director of Operations, at nroberts@cleansd.org. Thank you!

adopt-a-canyon BoxedGreen cleanups community involvement creek to bay employee volunteers habitat restoration local business RECON environmental reuse sony

Breaking Down a Breezy Creek to Bay Cleanup!

Today’s blog post comes from our Community Events Coordinator, Lexi Ambrogi, who is one of only 2 people who fearlessly and tirelessly planned this year’s Creek to Bay Cleanup!

As the numbers and results trickle into our office, we’re growing more and more confident of one thing: our 12^th Annual Creek to Bay Cleanup was a success!

Flash back to 5AM Saturday morning. Our staff members’ alarms were all set to right around this time, and I’m betting that they looked out their windows and thought what I did: that wind! That rain! How is it possibly this loud outside right now?

But fortunately for us, the weather actually improved throughout the morning, and by the time volunteers started reporting to our record 96 cleanup sites throughout San Diego County, it was almost pleasant outside.

While the threat of rain may have kept a handful of volunteers in bed that morning, preliminary totals indicate that we had more than 5,000 people cleaning up their local creeks, beaches and bays as part of this event! And while the trash totals are still being compiled, we’re expecting that these volunteers removed roughly 150,000 pounds of litter and debris from their communities.

Two volunteers pulled this tractor tire out of Chollas Creek, though maybe with a little help…

Every year at this event—and Coastal Cleanup Day in September—we look forward to hearing about the interesting and bizarre things that our volunteers find tucked away in canyons, riverbeds and trails. Some of my favorites this year include a cast iron bathtub (Alpine), a teddy bear scientist (Golden Hill), a 6-foot stuffed bear (City Heights), and a 5-pound bag of raw chicken wings (City Heights).

Despite the smoking ban at San Diego County beaches, volunteers are reporting that cigarette butts were once again the most commonly found item at their cleanup sites. With the help of initiatives like our Cigarette Litter Prevention Program, we’re hoping that we’ll see fewer butts on the ground and more in the trash can where they belong. Thanks to all of our Creek to Bay Cleanup sponsors who help make this event possible each year!

A family with the Bank of America volunteer team at Memorial Community Park works together to clean up Logan Heights.

Looking to join us at our next event? We have a bunch of cleanups coming up in May and June. Click here for more information on how to get involved!

Volunteers at Fletcher Cove in Solana Beach relax after a morning of hard work. Way to go with those reusable buckets, guys!

beach cleanup canyon cleanups chollas creek city heights clean san diego countywide cleanup creek to bay creek to bay cleanup I Love A Clean San Diego ILACSD volunteer

Keeping Green with Jon Green: A C2B Site Captain Profile

Today we have a guest blog post from Creek to Bay site captain, Jon Green! We interviewed Jon on the highlights of C2B, why he started captaining, and what the weirdest item was he found during a cleanup…

Here's Jon out at a cleanup site — Here’s Jon out at a cleanup site

Creek to Bay is such a great event for Back Country Land Trust (BCLT) to participate in because it helps us achieve our goal of cleaning up Alpine’s creeks and streams that flow into the San Diego River. The one-day, County-wide effort also helps BCLT and our volunteers here in Alpine to feel connected to the larger community throughout San Diego. Without events like this, and the support of so many dedicated people, trash would just accumulate in our waterways, eventually finding it’s way to the ocean and coastline. These types of community clean-up events are an inspiring way to “make the world a better place” by doing your own little part to help clean up the mess that would otherwise just be endlessly accumulating around us.

In 2013, Jon and his team cleaned up 5,000 pounds of trash from Alpine Creek

I was invited to participate in Creek to Bay in 2013 by ILACSD, and jumped at the opportunity to work in partnership with such a great non-profit partner in BCLT’s efforts to clean up and restore Alpine’s creeks and streams. For over two years, BCLT has been cleaning up Alpine’s waterways that lead to the San Diego River through our watershed stewardship program. Partnering with ILACSD for this event was just a natural fit for us to continue to engage the San Diego community in being good stewards of their watershed, and to enhance our impact in clearing trash and debris from our rivers. I’m proud to be a leader in this effort as a Creek to Bay Site Captain. It’s how I do my part to create positive change in the world.

Through our watershed stewardship program, BCLT is working with over 40 private landowners throughout Alpine to clear trash and restore habitat along Alpine’s waterways that flow into the San Diego River. Volunteers who come out to participate in BCLT watershed events, like Creek to Bay, get the chance to see some beautiful creek-side riparian areas that would otherwise be completely unavailable to the public because these are mainly private residences. The site we’ll be working on in 2014 for example is a 9-acre private property that stretches along Alpine Creek (at the intersection of Alpine Boulevard and Tavern Road). Oak and sycamore provide a shady canopy for a park-like setting beneath the trees, where Alpine Creek flows through rocky stream-banks and open clearings, colored with wild grape leaves and California holly-berry, or Toyon. Since this land is private property, this event will provide a unique opportunity for volunteers to see some of this amazing riparian habitat for themselves since BCLT is working in partnership with the landowner.

It’s inspiring to see so many people working together to keep San Diego’s waterways clean and beautiful. Events like these build a sense of place in our small foothill community that keeps us tied to a “bigger picture” within San Diego. We may live “up the hill” here in Alpine, but everyone lives downstream from someone, and we are all truly connected by our waterways. This event is our annual “reminder” to the community that we all live in the same watershed.

Unfortunately, we find a lot of household waste dumped off the side of the road, probably because people would rather dump it illegally than pay fees for disposal at a waste facility (ed. note: learn how you can dispose of hazardous waste at WasteFreeSD.org). Some of the more unusual items we’ve found throughout our watershed clean-up efforts include: a stolen ATM machine; a safe with no door (and sadly, no money); gallons of used motor oil thrown off of the road shoulder; a bathtub; and weirdly, a bag full of goat skulls. Unfortunately, we haven’t found anything really charismatic, mostly just disgusting trash that should not be anywhere near the creek.

Great job, team!!! Hope to see you all in 2014

In 2013, we pulled nearly 5,000 pounds of trash from Alpine Creek during the Creek to Bay event. Alpine Creek is the single largest pollution source flowing into El Capitan Reservoir, which is the City of San Diego’s main surface water catchment for drinking water, municipal use, etc. Any trash that we can remove from the creeks in Alpine, saves the taxpayers and agencies time and money from having to remove it and clean up the pollution later before that water reaches the tap in your kitchen sink. If Creek to Bay volunteers want to work in a more natural, rural setting AND make a difference in the headwaters of the San Diego River, then this is their chance to help us clean up the creeks here in Alpine.

We also have some AMAZING places to explore after the event while volunteers are here in town, like BCLT’s own Wright’s Field Nature Preserve (open to the public for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding), and of course the Alpine Beer Company for lunch / dinner afterward! Anyone willing to make the 30-minute drive to Alpine surely won’t be disappointed with the unparalleled natural scenery and local craft beer we have up here in the foothills. Come on out to join us in cleaning up Alpine’s watershed during Creek to Bay, or any of our other BCLT events.

Thanks for all your help, Jon! You can join Jon in Alpine or any of our other 90+ inland and coastal cleanup sites. Learn more and register today!

alpine creek bclt creek to bay jon green

What’s What at the 2014 Creek to Bay Cleanup

Today’s post comes from I Love A Clean San Diego’s Director of Development & Marketing, Morgan Justice-Black, who will be attending her 8th Creek to Bay Cleanup on April 26, 2014!

I remember my first Creek to Bay Cleanup, it was April 28th, 2007. We hosted our kick off site at Belmont Park in Mission Beach, and it was freezing! But, we still managed to bring out more than 200 volunteers at that site, and just over 3,000 volunteers countywide.

Fast forward to today and we are recruiting an impressive 6,000 volunteers each year, double that of just 7 years prior. A lot has changed about Creek to Bay over the year’s, but the constant has been the heart of San Diego residents who come out to lend a hand, despite rain or record high temperatures!

In just a few short weeks, I Love A Clean San Diego will be hosting its 12th Annual Creek to Bay Cleanup. Here’s a cheat sheet of what you’re in store for you if you volunteer on April 26th at Creek to Bay. A few things that we have planned for this year’s cleanup include:

1. Currently there are 95 cleanup sites available for volunteers to participate in. This is more than ever before! Cleanup sites stretch from Oceanside to Imperial Beach and all the way out to Alpine! We’ve also got a number of incredible site captains who are leading these cleanup sites. Learn more about some of them as we feature them in upcoming blog posts. See them all online at www.CreektoBay.org

2. We are offering Scout patches for Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops who volunteer. Have you seen this year’s patch design? Here it is! Once the cleanup concludes, participants can go back onto our website, www.CreektoBay.org and request their patches.

3. The Bring Your Own Reusables campaign is back in full force, meaning that we want all of our volunteers to bring a few things to help reduce our waste at the cleanup. Please remember to bring: a plastic bucket or other container to collect trash in, work gloves or gardening gloves, and a canteen for refilling with water at the event. You may have heard that our Bring Your Own Reusables campaign, which we fondly refer to as “BYO”, received national recognition by Keep America Beautiful this winter. In case you need a visual reminder, here is what to bring:

Here we are, accepting the Innovation Award from Keep America Beautiful!

4. Our generous friends at Sony Electronics are once again sponsoring our Creek to Bay Photo Contest! This year’s theme…Be The Change! We are asking folks to snap a photo of themselves or their volunteer group changing our environment for the better at Creek to Bay. More information about the contest and submission guidelines are on our Creek to Bay contest page.

Here's last year's photo contest winner, Evan! — Here’s last year’s photo contest winner, Evan!

5. Just a month after our Creek to Bay Cleanup, volunteers will have the opportunity to get together and share stories about the weirdest items they found at our 60th Anniversary Celebration Event. Join us on May 29th from 6:30 – 9pm at SeaWorld for what is bound to be a great time! More information is on our website too!

Can’t wait to see all of you out there on April 26th for another fabulous Creek to Bay Cleanup. And here’s to hoping that this year’s weather is a little warmer than 2007, but not as warm as 2008!

beach cleanups boy scouts creek to bay creek to bay cleanup creek to bay photo contest girl scouts great american cleanup I Love A Clean San Diego innovation award Keep America Beautiful merit badges scout patches sony volunteer

Tsunami Debris, Paint, and… Intestines? A Creek to Bay Site Captain Profile

The 12th annual Creek to Bay cleanup is coming up on April 26! We like to give our volunteers some background on the site captains who help lead the cleanup, as well as some facts about various sites at which they may volunteer. Today we profiled Wainwright Hester, a long-time C2B site captain and big advocate of cleaning up SD!

Wainwright Hester had been organizing cleanups at his work for years, often at Creek to Bay sites. One year a call went out for site captains and he thought he’d help out and give it a try. Seeing all of the trash that could have stayed in the area without all of the volunteers’ hard work made the whole experience well worth it. Wainwright thinks the C2B cleanup is really important for our local environment. So much debris collects in our waterways that, if not regularly cleaned out, it would cascade into a much bigger problem! If we can catch those containers with paint, oil, or whatever chemical is lurking inside of them, before they degrade enough to leak, we can keep a simple cleanup from turning into a major cleanup. Plus, the longer trash is in our waterways, the more it decays from one big piece into numerous smaller pieces and thus making it harder to completely remove.

This year, as he has in the past, Wainwright is captaining Torrey Pines State Park and, according to the California Coastal Commission, Torrey Pines is a prime site for Japanese tsunami debris to accumulate. Last year he didn’t find any obvious tsunami debris but volunteers could possibly find some this year. When asked what the weirdest object Wainwright found at a cleanup was, he replied, “I was at Ponto State Beach a few years ago and someone found animal intestines. Animal: at least that’s what we kept telling ourselves.” Hey, at least our cleanups are both beneficial AND keep you on your toes?

Volunteers of all ages, helping clean up Torrey Pines State Beach!

Wainwright’s favorite part of the Creek to Bay Cleanup is the volunteers. Since they are volunteering, they often have a volunteering attitude so they are willing to do whatever needs to be done to make his C2B site a success.

Any final words to encourage our wonderful ILACSD team to sign up and volunteer for C2B 2014, Wainwright? “I think that everyone should participate in at least one clean up in their lifetime because it would bring awareness to what actually happens when someone does not throw their trash into a trash can. It would be a real eye opener for people who think that litter is either not a problem or that nature alone can handle it.” We couldn’t put it better. Thanks for all your hard work, Wainwright, and we look forward to seeing you on the 26th!

Join Wainwright at Torrey Pines, or any of our other 90+ inland and coastal Creek to Bay cleanup locations: sign up today!

cleanup creek to bay debris hester wainwright torrey pines tsunami

ILACSD- Winning First place for Keeping San Diego Beautiful!

The Keep America Beautiful Clean Community Systems was introduced in San Diego in 1977. The City Council and current Mayor Pete Wilson gave the green light for the organization to officially become an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, and the name I Love A Clean San Diego was born. First as the program slogan, then eventually as our organization’s name! We are proud of our work with Keep America Beautiful (KAB). This week, some of our staff are at the KAB conference to learn more. Here’s how ILACSD has been keeping San Diego clean (and beautiful) and, we have to brag a bit, a few cool programs of ours that have been nationally recognized by KAB:

-For 2013, we won the KAB Innovation Award! To further educate San Diegans about the importance of waste reduction and pollution prevention,we launched a Bring Your Own Reusables campaign, encouraging volunteers to switch from disposable plastic bags and gloves, and single-use water bottles to a more sustainable alternative when volunteering. Approximately 70% of volunteers (5,000+ out of over 7,000 participants) brought at least one reusable item to our largest volunteer event of the year, Coastal Cleanup Day.

-Cigarette Litter Prevention Program: I Love A Clean San Diego receives grant funding each year from Keep America Beautiful to combat the large cigarette butt litter issue facing local beaches, neighborhoods, and outdoor areas. ILACSD partners with the Surfrider Foundation San Diego Chapter to install permanent ashcans throughout San Diego County, and has launched programs in beach area communities including La Jolla, Oceanside, and Point Loma, and recently expanded the program inland in 2012 to include North Park, Mission Hills, and La Mesa. The successful program has an average 55% decrease in cigarette butt litter, proving that smokers can make the right disposal choice when proper infrastructure is available.

–Creek to Bay: This cleanup is part of what KAB calls the “Great American Cleanup”. ILACSD’s signature event, the Creek to Bay Cleanup, represents one of the largest environmental events of the year. Since the inception of this event in 2003, 44,528 volunteers have participated in this effort – resulting in the removal of 1.65 million pounds of debris from San Diego County locations. The mission of the event is to engage the community in removing debris from San Diego’s beaches, canyons, waterways, and parks. The 12th Annual Creek to Bay Cleanup is coming soon on April 26, hope to see you there!

-Last year, ILACSD was awarded 1st place for our Cigarette Litter Prevention Program

We’re looking forward to many great years ahead working with KAB! Got ideas for other innovative ways we can encourage conservation and protection of resources? Let us know in the comments!

award clpp creek to bay KAB Keep America Beautiful

Carroll Canyon Cleanup, a Site Captain’s Perspective on Creek to Bay

Today’s blog post comes from our Marketing Intern, Christina, who fearlessly led a cleanup site as part of the Creek to Bay Cleanup.

This year’s Creek to Bay Cleanup was a huge success thanks to all of our hard working staff, interns and volunteers! We’ve all had time to exchange stories and reflect on our experiences, and I thought I’d take this opportunity to share my experience with all of you. This was not only my first Creek to Bay, but my first ever event with I Love A Clean San Diego, so I was excited and a bit nervous as I served as a site captain for Carroll Canyon.

Upon arrival, I noticed how steep the descent to the actual canyon was and felt a bit intimidated knowing I was about to lead groups of students and cub scouts down the treacherous hill through mounds of poison oak. Some of the volunteers blew me away with their incredible enthusiasm and dedication. For example, one man who was volunteering with John Deer Water, showed up at 8:30, which was half an hour before the event even began, grabbed a trash bag and headed down the canyon straight away. He told me this was his third cleanup, and a well-seasoned veteran wastes no time waiting for others. Throughout the duration of the event he made 4 complete trips into the abyss and back with two full black bags of trash each time. Everyone was supremely impressed with his dedication and persistence.

Volunteers in canyons are an essential part of the Creek to Bay Cleanup

Trekking alongside the creek that runs through the canyon, we were all very surprised to find such a large amount of debris. There isn’t much surrounding the area so it was odd to find so many beer cans, clothing, plastic bins, and Red Box sleeves. How exactly do you watch DVDs in a canyon anyway? At one point, two Cub Scouts were seen in the distance lugging a giant rusted tent and canopy up the steep hill, we all ran to their aid but they refused help because they wanted to be able to say they hauled it all the way to the top themselves. The boys won our competition to see who could collect the most garbage. They were thrilled to receive free passes to the Birch Aquarium. After all of the Carroll Canyon volunteers battled their way through the terrain for three hours, we all felt a little more connected to each other and a little scared we had all contracted poison oak.

After everyone had parted ways, I couldn’t help but feel so proud of our community for giving up so much time to come hang out with me and help make San Diego a bit cleaner, healthier and more beautiful. I look forward to working I Love A Clean San Diego’s future events, and we all hope to see YOU there as well!

boy scouts carroll canyon clean beaches clean canyons creek to bay I Love A Clean San Diego service volunteer