For more than 1,000 volunteers, the focus of Earth Day will be sprucing up the Pacific Coast beaches.
The annual Washington Coast Cleanup on Saturday is expected to draw that many people to remove tons of debris that washes ashore on beaches, said David Lindau, program coordinator for Washington CoastSavers, which organizes the Coastal Cleanup Day.
“We are inviting folks to come out and basically help us with the cleanups on the beach,” he said. “It is great for anyone. It is great for people who are on their own or those with a family and kids.
“There is a considerable variety of beaches.”
The beaches are all along the outer coast of Washington — not including the northern Strait of Juan de Fuca — Lindau said.
“Our focus is on the outer coast,” he said. “We get a lot of questions about the Puget Sound and the Strait, but there are other folks who are taking care of that.”
The cleanup will be throughout the day. Volunteers can check in — or just show up at a beach — at anytime but are encouraged to do so in the morning, Lindau said.
Check-in
Volunteers, who can stay for any amount of time, are asked to check in at an official “station” so they can receive instructions, get trash bags and find out more information on whether there will be food events later in the day.
Check-in locations on the North Olympic Peninsula include Olympic National Park Visitor Center at 3002 Mount Angeles Road in Port Angeles, Hobuck Beach near Neah Bay, the Lake Ozette Ranger Station, Three Rivers, Forks Transit Center at 551 S. Forks Ave., the Hoh reservation and the Kalaloch Campground.
Most of the beaches are within the park.
Last year, more than 24 tons of debris was removed, Lindau said.
“We had an amazing turnout despite really awful weather conditions,” he said. “Hopefully this year, the weather will be better.”
He said the main rule for people cleaning up beaches is to bring the collection bags back.
“Whether they bag up one bag or 10, everything needs to be brought back to the collection point because nobody, and I mean nobody, is going to be going behind people picking up bags,” he said. “Leaving bagged debris actually makes it worse than if they hadn’t done anything at all.”
He also said it is important for people to wear appropriate clothing for the weather and the type of hike they will have to do.
Some beaches are accessible by car, such as Rialto Beach, while others, such as Second Beach, require a hike.
Do what is possible
Lindau also emphasized that volunteers should do only what they can.
If they are comfortable carrying larger debris such as tires or metal objects, then they may, but if they are not up to it, then they shouldn’t feel guilty leaving it behind, he said.
He also said bringing tools such as gloves and/or objects to dig in the sand or cut rope could be helpful on the day of the cleanup.
Food will be available at Hobuck Beach from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Lake Ozette from noon to 3 p.m. and Kalaloch Campground from noon to 3 p.m.
For more information or to pre-register, visit www.coastsavers.org/washington.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
