California community cleans up

The San Diego Port Tenants Association and its members will tackle rubbish in San Diego Bay and on its shorelines in the 29th annual Operation Clean Sweep, taking place on 24 August. Working alongside these volunteers will be Port of San Diego employees, their families and friends, as well as members of the US Navy and US Coast Guard. The public is invited to participate. This year there will be five public clean up sites and 14 tenant-managed sites.

“Operation Clean Sweep is a great community event that benefits the environment of San Diego Bay and its shorelines immensely,” said Garry Bonelli, chairman of the Board of Port Commissioners.

“The Port is grateful to the San Diego Port Tenants Association for executing this event for 29 years and to all the volunteers who have dedicated their time and energy to help keep the bay clean.”

Major 2018 haul

Last year, 1,225 volunteers registered for the 2018 Operation Clean Sweep. Those volunteers removed nearly 47,000 pounds of rubbish and debris from San Diego Bay, its shorelines and Chollas Creek, which drains into San Diego Bay.

Dozens of bicycles were pulled from the water, along with shopping carts, household appliances, tires, a toilet and a large chunk of a drydock.

Volunteers will be treated to an after-party sponsored by the San Diego Port Tenants Association. The party will feature prizes for the most unusual trash, while Pollution Pirate Pete, who stars in the port’s latest environmental campaign, #ThatsMyBay, will attend to give away prizes and advocate about keeping rubbish out of the bay.