California Coastkeeper Alliance works with State Water Board to develop policy with goal of no litter in our waters
Contact: Sara Aminzadeh, California Coastkeeper Alliance (cell: 415-794-8422)
California Coastkeeper Alliance
05/15/2013
Memorial Day weekend kicks off summer travel, and with that an influx of litter that finds its way into California’s waters. The upcoming weekend also signals the need for a statewide trash policy that will soon be brought to the forefront by organizations vested in protecting California’s waters. California Coastkeeper Alliance (CCKA) is collaborating with government agencies on a new trash policy to keep litter out of storm drains that feed directly to the ocean, bays, and rivers.
“Memorial Day weekend often results in critical levels of litter in California’s waters,” said Sara Aminzadeh, executive director of CCKA “This proposed policy is a broader step to enable local governments with the tools to implement sustainable, structural changes. Together, these changes can have a real impact on California’s water quality.”
CCKA has tips for consumers on reducing litter this Memorial Day at www.cacoastkeeper.org.
California’s State Water Resources Control Board is expected to release a draft trash policy in June that declares a goal of no trash present in the state’s ocean, bays, and surface waters. The policy follows the City of Los Angeles’ model, which stops over one million pounds of trash from reaching Southern California waters every year. The policy is the first of its kind, and could become a national model.
Under the proposed statewide trash policy, local governments can choose from a variety of strategies to comply with California standards to prevent trash from reaching waterways. Options include trash-catching devices on storm drains, street sweeping, education and local measures like single-use bag bans. The statewide policy would complement the suite of source-reduction bills currently before the California Legislature, as well as local initiatives to reduce trash.
CCKA participates on an advisory board to inform the drafting process and supports the policy with additional measures to ensure that the final version does not override existing local trash mandates (like those in Los Angeles), improves incentives for stopping litter at the source, and requires consistent monitoring.
Californians removed more than 600,000 pounds of trash from the state’s coastline on last year’s Coastal Cleanup Day. This significant one-day trash removal doesn’t account for the other 364 days of the year when litter is tossed on the ground, escapes from bins or flows from storm drains to the state’s ocean, bays, and rivers. Trash pollutes shoreline areas and waters and places a significant financial burden on state and local governments due to lost tourism revenue. Once in the water, trash breaks down into smaller pieces that can persist in the environment for decades, polluting the water and harming fish and animals that mistake it for food.
The State Water Board will hold workshops this summer for the public to weigh in on the plan. The final policy is scheduled for adoption this year.
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California Coastkeeper Alliance unites 12 local Waterkeeper programs to fight for swimmable, fishable and drinkable waters for Californian communities and ecosystems. www.cacoastkeeper.org
Communications Consultant Lola Dvorak supports CCKA’s strategic communications by helping waterkeepers tell their stories.
