Santa Monica Beach Trash Report: Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017

Dateline: Thursday morning, after 10 a.m., September 7, 2017 at Santa Monica State Beach.

Today I walked from the Santa Monica Pier to Ocean Park and back along the shoreline.  About 1/4 mile into my walk I observed numerous young ladies hand picking up #beachtrash near the water's edge and along the berm.  I inquired and they told me they were students at Marlborough School (for girls, grades 7 - 12) and were volunteering in a beach cleanup sponsored by the Surfrider Foundation.  I thanked them for their efforts.

Nevertheless, there was still #beachtrash near the water's edge uncollected by the City of Santa Monica which I captured in the following photos, in addition to several photos of the Surfrider Foundation volunteers from Marlborough School.

Below, is where I first observed the large group of young ladies from Marlborough School hand picking up #beachtrash near the water's edge, something that you will rarely find anyone from the City of Santa Monica doing...

More volunteers below...

Above and below, more student volunteers hand picking up #beachtrash... something that the City of Santa Monica rarely does even though they are obligated to do so per the Operating Agreement with the State of California (Calif. State Parks) and because the City has publicly stated at least twice that it does hand pick up #beachtrash on a daily basis near the water's edge, though that is actually a continuing misrepresentation.  Just sayin'...

*** Let's give credit today where credit is due!  The beach is clean TODAY because of the SURFRIDER FOUNDATION and the volunteer students from MARLBOROUGH SCHOOL.

Many thanks to the staff at Marlborough School for this wonderful civic lesson in action and a great way to teach these young people to respect the beach... even if the City of Santa Monica continues to ignore its obligation to daily clean up the #beachtrash near the water's edge.

More student volunteers above and below hand picking up #beachtrash!...  Fantastic!

 Below, my personal #beachtrash as art installation quickly created from debris left in the sand and ignored and uncollected by the City of Santa Monica, namely, two bottle caps, a cigarette butt and a wine bottle cork...

Below, more disgusting #beachtrash ignored by the City of Santa Monica...

Below, the SURFRIDER FOUNDATION canopy on the sand adjacent to the boardwalk at Bay St. at Santa Monica State Beach where the volunteers gathered after their morning #beachtrash clean up.

Above and below, I literally stepped on this glass bottle which was buried just below the surface adjacent to the lifeguard tower at Bay St.  Yes, I picked it up and disposed of it.

Many Thanks to SURFRIDER FOUNDATION and the MARLBOROUGH SCHOOL for their successful #beachtrash clean up operation today at Santa Monica State Beach.  If it weren't for such volunteers, this State Beach would remain filthy with #beachtrash because the City of Santa Monica certainly does NOT daily hand pick up #beachtrash near the water's edge.

Respectfully submitted,

William Maguire,
Attorney at law,
and Concerned citizen

(All photos by & Copyright William Maguire 2017.)

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Three Day Santa Monica Beach Trash Report: September 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, 2017

Friday, Sept. 1st, 2017, at 2900 Ocean Front Walk (aka, Lifeguard Tower #29)

Broken glass in the sand where the City of Santa Monica grooms the soft dry sand above the high tide line and well away from the water's edge. Left behind and uncollected by the City tractors and rakes for someone to step on.  I just happened along here in the morning on a walk and noticed it right in front of me.  Unfortunately, the City of Santa Monica does not bother to assign anyone to walk the beach daily to pick up #beachtrash that threatens public health and safety...

Above and below, right in front of Lifeguard Tower #29 near the water's edge a near full bottle of red wine... left uncollected and not disposed of at all by the City of Santa Monica due to its continued failure to daily have anyone walk the beach near the water's edge and hand pick up #beachtrash...

Below, #beachtrash I collected adjacent to lifeguard tower #29 near the water's edge...

Saturday, Sept. 2nd, 2017, at 600 Ocean Front Walk (aka, Lifeguard Tower #6) and
800 Ocean Front Walk (aka, Lifeguard Tower #8)

Above and below, right smack dab next to where the City of Santa Monica tractor and rake have groomed the soft dry sand is a broken cheap body board with a nylon covering up what is basically a styrofoam body board. These are illegal and easily break in the surf causing a rip in the nylon and then dispersing bits of styrofoam all over the sand as #beachtrash and an attractive unhealthy food source for wildlife...

So NO ONE from the City of Santa Monica bothered to stop and pick this #beachtrash up. Why?!...
Because the City doesn't give a hoot about it, that's why.

Behind Tower #8 at Sorrento Beach is a huge cesspool of storm drain runoff mixed with sea water in a collective disgusting and foul nuisance which is rimmed with a great deal of #beachtrash ignored and not disposed of properly by the City of Santa Monica...

Above and below, you won't see these photos promoted or distributed by the City of Santa Monica as part of their social media.....

The Gold Coast of Santa Monica... not what you were thinking, right?!...

I don't think this is what HEAL THE BAY means when it talks about wetlands!...

This is just foul and disgusting.....

This cesspool represents a clear public health and safety hazard!...  What happens when a small child or adolescent wanders off from their family, even briefly, and is exposed to this foul and disease ridden cesspool?!...  What hazardous waste protocols would the family have to be concerned with so that the child does not become sickened? 

Leaving the cesspool behind and walking back toward the water's edge...

Above and below, you can see that the City groomed the beach this morning above the berm and well away from the water's edge BUT the City has not bothered to have anyone walk near the water's edge to pick up even obviously visible #beachtrash.  Additionally, the City completely ignores the public health and safety hazard that is the storm drain cesspool behind Lifeguard Tower #8 and right near the Jonathan Club...

Below, additional #beachtrash that I collected near the water's edge adjacent to Lifeguard Tower #6 and which I disposed of properly in a beach trash can... doing what the City won't do.....

Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017, 600 Ocean Front Walk (aka, Lifeguard Tower #6)

Below, by 10:30 a.m., I had collected all of this #beachtrash below near the water's edge adjacent to Lifeguard Tower #6... and which I later disposed of in a nearby beach trash can..... once again doing what the City of Santa Monica won't do.....

Last but not least, on a positive note... I discovered that the restaurant BACK ON THE BEACH Cafe beside the Annenberg Beach House now serves up paper straws instead of plastic straws in a wonderful effort to do the right thing for the environment as plastic straws represent a huge problem in terms of becoming #beachtrash, as well as a threat to wildlife like this local seagull below...

Wow!  That is a "Paper Straw", ladies and gentlemen!...

Respectfully submitted,

William Maguire,
Attorney at law,
and Concerned citizen

(All photos by & Copyright William Maguire 2017.)

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