Kids ‘Take a Stand in the Sand’
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| By: Ambrosia Sarabia | Wednesday, June 11, 2008 2:09:00 PM |
| Last updated: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 2:09:00 PM |
SoCal beaches combed for litter during cleanup.
 | | | | | Annual Cleanup — Children and volunteers from Orange County elementary schools formed a human sign stating ‘Kids Care’ during the 15th annual Adopt-a-Beach Cleanup at Bolsa Chica State Beach. | | |
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Children up and down the California coast ventured outdoors to the nearest beach and “took a stand in the sand,” where they rid the coastline of trash during the 15th annual Kids Ocean Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup June 6.
Students from Humboldt to San Diego County paved the beaches for litter in a mission to prevent items from harming marina mammals.
More than 520 elementary students from Santa Ana, Anaheim and Newport Beach helped out at Bolsa Chica State Beach, where they were provided with plastic bags and gloves by Orange County Coastkeeper, which organized the local event.
Armed with hats, suntan lotion and a determination to find even the smallest pieces of litter, four friends from Andersen Elementary in Newport Beach took their time cleaning up the beach.
Erin Hatch, a fourth-grader at Andersen, decided to join in the event, even with her leg in a cast.
“It is very hard (to walk in a cast),” she admitted. “But I wanted to clean up the beach and help the environment.”
Pacifiers, plastic utensils, cigarette butts, bottles and bottle caps, used gloves, trash bags and milk cartons made up the majority of the trash, said Maddie Ruiz and Caroline Bethel, both 10, from Anderson.
After picking up litter, students assembled on the beach to form the words “Kids Care” — a message that was photographed from the air — and discussed what they learned.
“When I was little, I used to throw my trash anywhere,” explained Grace Axelson, 10, of Andersen. “But now, I pick it up. because I know more about it.”
While the Orange County cleanup was going on, 9,000 students from San Diego cleared Oceanside City Beach of trash during an event organized by I Love A Clean San Diego.
“The Kids’ beach Cleanup is an impressive program,” said Pauline Martinson, the organization’s executive director. “After learning about sources of ocean pollution, children immediately have the opportunity to take action, clean the beach, and send a powerful message of stewardship to the residents of San Diego County,”
The annual coastal cleanup event began in 1994 by the Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education and is now organized statewide by the California Coastal Commission.
This article first appeared in the June 2008 issue of The Log Newspaper. All or parts of the information contained in this article might be outdated. |
