Santa Barbara County Project Clean Water

Drum Roll, Please...The final numbers are in for Santa Barbara County Cleanup Month. 776 volunteers cleaned up 3,918 pounds of trash and picked up over 17,000 p...ieces of litter! The top items this year were cigarette butts at 3,130, plastic pieces at 2,848, and food wrappers at 2,064. Altogether, volunteers covered an estimated 68 miles throughout the County. In California, more than 10,000 people turned out at over 3,000 cleanups across the state, gathering close to 70,000 pounds of trash! Our beaches and creeks are going to be so much healthier this winter, thanks to you! Explore Ecology will continue to be a resource for how to be a good steward of the environment, so sign up for our newsletter, follow us on social media, and stay tuned for what's next! See more

We always love seeing Costal Cleanup Month volunteers in action!

Thanks to all the #coastalcleanup volunteers for helping protect our waterways!

The ocean water quality results from this week are in, and all beaches are open. Have a safe weekend!

Thank you County of Santa Barbara - Public Works for providing a proper way to dispose of household hazardous waste and electronics!

THANK YOU to everyone who participated in this year's Coastal Cleanup Month! Every action you take to #protectyourhappyplace helps prevent ocean pollution. Even though #coastalcleanup month 2020 is over, we can protect our local open spaces and waterways every day of the year! Remember, only rain down the storm drain.

Congratulations to the winners of our first ever Storm Drain Chalk Art Contest, @eradepower and @kadishell! We'll be contacting you directly to get you your pri...zes. Thanks to Explore Ecology and City of Santa Barbara Creeks Division for putting on the contest, and SB Shellfish Co. for donating a gift card to one of our winners!

Want to be a part of something big? Safely participate in the last #CoastalCleanupDay of the month today! #CoastalCleanupDay has been the biggest volunteer even...t in the state for the past 3 decades. Learn how you can get involved in a pandemic-friendly volunteer event at https://www.vccoastcleanup.org/. Thank you for your help to #KeepVenturaBeautiful! See more

More than 20 percent of trash picked up at the beach are cigarette butts. These small plastic filters are harmful to the environment and wildlife. During your neighborhood #CoastalCleanup, make sure to count how many cigarette butts and other items you find on the data app Clean Swell, which is used to drive policies and solutions to marine debris. Be sure to fill out Explore Ecology under the group name. Learn more at https://www.facebook.com/events/333441087653900/

There is only 1 more Saturday of #coastalcleanup Month! Get ready to #ProtectYourHappyPlace and help pick up litter in your neighborhood and local outdoor areas. Watch this informative video to learn the importance of tracking the trash you collect on Saturday, September 25!