LA-area volunteers met up Saturday to 'Heal the Bay'

People headed out to the beach in Los Angeles County this Saturday, but not exactly for fun in the sun. They were there for the 35th Coastal Cleanup Day organized by Heal the Bay.

KNX’s Nataly Tavidian reported that thousands of volunteers had already picked up more than 10,000 pounds of trash and more than 750 pounds of recycling by Saturday afternoon. Coastal Cleanup Beach Captain Kennedy McSherry, 13, is one of the volunteers she caught up with this weekend at Redondo Beach.

“It’ll just take a couple – an hour of your day, just to make a difference in the lives of everybody,” the eighth grader said. McSherry added that 80% of the trash on the beach actually moves there from inland areas through storm drains.

Last year, Heal the Bay volunteers collected more than 16,00 pounds of trash and 400 pounds of recycling from 97 miles of beaches rivers and trails, Tavidian reported. Since some scientists estimate there will be more plastic than fish by 2050, these efforts are an important way to help keep our planet cleaner.

Here are some photos from the event:

More information about the effort is available here .