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Environment & Science

Coastal Cleanup Day: Volunteers help remove trash and invasive plants

Coastal Cleanup Day brings out thousands of volunteers across Southern California to clean up beaches and habitats.
Coastal Cleanup Day brings out thousands of volunteers across Southern California to clean up beaches and habitats.
screengrab from YouTube Coastal Commission video
Kyle Garcia | KPCC |

Volunteers at the LAX Dunes Preserve are weeding out invasive species Saturday as part of the 26th Annual Coastal Cleanup Day.

The event draws thousands of volunteers across 50 spots picking up trash all over Southern California beaches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2&v=IRIOKoiboOQ

But at the dunes preserve, people will be helping to pull out non-native plants like wild mustard and Russian thistle.

"When you remove the invasive species, the types of floral that return will be plants that are native to Southern California," said Rod Abbott of the Santa Monica Bay Foundation, who helped coordinate the cleanup. "So California Coastal Buckwheat is one of those that the El Segundo Blue Butterfly thrives on." 

Coastal Cleanup Day is a world wide event and has previously collected more than a million pounds of trash.