Thousands of volunteers hit LA beaches in massive coastal trash cleanup

Thousands of volunteers across Los Angeles County traded their usual Saturday plans for buckets and trash bags as they headed to the beach to help clean up the coast.

The effort was part of Heal the Bay’s 37th annual Coastal Cleanup Day, with more than 60 cleanup sites across the county where volunteers could pitch in.

In Venice and Santa Monica, volunteers were seen combing through the sand and collecting litter in buckets and orange trash bags.

The annual event is meant to bring people together to remove trash and recyclable materials from beaches, waterways and other coastal areas.

An estimated 19,000 pounds of trash was collected during Heal the Bay’s cleanup last year.

The Los Angeles event is organized in partnership with the California Coastal Commission and Ocean Conservancy as part of a broader effort to reduce pollution that can harm ocean ecosystems and wildlife.

Similar cleanups took place across California on Saturday as part of the state’s 42nd annual California Coastal Cleanup Day.

An estimated 50,000 volunteers were expected to participate at more than 700 cleanup sites across all 58 California counties, collecting trash from beaches and other waterways.

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