Teachers, students, class parents, and all the other community-minded all-stars out there: have you ever wanted to take part in, or even help plan, a clean-up day?
The California Coastal Commission’s 36th Annual Coastal Cleanup Day is right around the corner on September 20th, 2025. This incredible event will include over 70 cleanup sites located across LA county’s beaches and other waterways, along with many more sites throughout the state. Now a climate-conscious collaboration between the California Coastal Commission, Heal the Bay, and the Ocean Conservancy, this year’s cleanup is only the most recent iteration of a storied tradition. What began with volunteers from the Northcoast Environmental Center tidying Humboldt County’s beaches in 1979 has blossomed into a statewide effort from tens of thousands of Californians looking to make a difference.
While we at LA Stormwater happily encourage you to get out there and volunteer on September 20 if you’re available and able (you can find a cleanup site near you here), we understand that this might not be possible for everyone. We’re just as excited to spread the eco-extravaganza beyond Coastal Cleanup Day. Here are some ideas to inspire you to get all hands on deck (or, on the playground) and plan a mini-cleanup of your own.
Be a Debris Detective
Between stray plastic baggies that mysteriously drifted free of their lunchboxes, discarded plastic water bottles, and scraps of snacktimes past, even the most conscientious school community can have debris tucked into its nooks and crannies. Teachers and students can make a commitment to each pick up five pieces of litter, while wearing gloves and other as-needed protective gear. It can be an adventure to poke around different corners of the campus tracking down hidden litter.
Beat the Heat
Picking up litter can be quite the workout! Make sure you start the clean-up early in the day before things start heating up, with plenty of water at the ready to hydrate your eco-conscious crew.
Hold a Recycling Refresher
Teachers, make sure that your kids know where to find the recycle bins on campus; encourage students to find the blue bin at home, too. It can be a challenge to keep track of recycling best practices, so grown-ups and students alike can benefit from a refresher now and again.
Earth Day’s official website has some excellent tips for how to optimize recycling: rinse old food or drink containers to get rid of any yucky residue; break down objects to ensure that different material types are separated (i.e., snipping off the thin plastic wrap around your emptied-out oat milk bottle); and keep in mind that some objects, like plastic-coated-paper coffee cups, aren’t recyclable at all.
Come on and Compost!
Vegetable rinds, fruit cores, grass clippings, old leaves, and even wood pulp-based cardboard can all make their way to the compost pile.
Keep Our Green Spaces, Clean Spaces
If you’re a teacher on a campus with a school garden, schedule some time to bring your classroom outdoors and encourage your students to help pick up any litter among the flowers, fruits, and veggies. And parents can participate too: a park picnic can become even more special when you cap off the day by (safely) picking up some trash together.
Give Us a Shout!
Did you make it out to one of the official Coastal Cleanup Day sites, or host your own campus or neighborhood cleanup? We’d love to hear about it! Email us your stories at lastormwater@lacity.org.
And teachers, check out our Teach LA Kids web page for more tips on how to help educate the next generation of eco experts.
