WA had over 55 tons of trash on beaches last July 5. Experts say this year could be worse

The Fourth of July may be one of the most festive days of the year in the U.S., but for environmental organizations, it’s no reason to celebrate.

“Last year, between Pacific Beach and Sea View down in the Long Beach Peninsula, we did have over 111,000 pounds of debris collected,” Washington CoastSavers Coordinator Megan Juran said of the organization’s July 5 beach cleanup in a phone call with McClatchy. “So that’s over 55 tons.”

And that number is likely an undercount, according to Juran.

“My first year with the July cleanup, I was like, ‘wow, I never thought that I would have literal dumpster fires in my life. But here we are,’” Juran said. “The weights can actually be more than what we have reported because we have things like dumpster fires that burn down the contents of the dumpster.”

As thousands of Washingtonians head to the beach each year to celebrate the fourth and watch fireworks over the water, the environment foots the bill. The Surfrider Foundation, an environmental nonprofit, refers to July 5 as the “dirtiest day on the beach,” on its website.

According to Paul Ruppert, a volunteer program specialist with Washington State Parks, the July 5 cleanup is the worst of the three beach cleaning events the department participates in each year.

“It definitely is [worse than the other cleanups], I think partly because of the numbers of participants that go down to the beach for the Fourth,” Ruppert told McClatchy News. “I think definitely that’s a big part of it.”

The other two cleanups take place on Earth Day and a post-summer cleanup in mid-to-late September. While the State Parks Department helps support the efforts, they’re primarily organized by independent organizations, such as the CoastSavers and other partners.

“We have three different beach cleanups throughout the year that we work with our partners with Washington CoastSavers, Surfrider Foundation , Grassroots Garbage Gang , and some others,” Ruppert said.

The July 5 cleanup, coordinated by the CoastSavers in conjunction with other organizations , runs across the southern half of the state’s Pacific coast, between Cape Disappointment and Pacific Beach. According to Juran, most of the debris comes from fireworks, but there are other sources too.

“That’s mostly going to be fireworks, firework-related debris, which with the case of people just really taking their partying to the next level, it can include stuff like broken chairs, broken umbrellas and beer cans and things like that,” Juran said.

July 4 falls closer to a weekend this year

According to Juran, environmental organizations are preparing for the possibility of even more trash on the beach this year since July 4 falls on a Thursday, and some people have the following day off of work.

“Last year, it was a Wednesday. So with it being in the middle of the week, [we] didn’t see as many folks,” Juran said.

In order to mitigate the damage, organizations are trying out a new, proactive method, made popular by the Grassroots Garbage Gang.

“They are the ones who sort of spearheaded having more of a proactive approach than a reactive approach by going out to all the beach accesses on the Fourth and handing out bags to people as they enter the beach,” Juran said.

That way, organizations can convince beachgoers to leave behind less trash, without asking them to compromise their plans for the Fourth.

Tips if you’re going to the beach

A more proactive approach could help, as Ruppert described the root of the problem as “the increased amount of people that are showing up on our beaches and not taking their garbage back.”

In addition to picking up after themselves, Juran asked beachgoers to be mindful of the types of fireworks they use.

“There are some that are more problematic than others, as far as lots of little tiny plastic pieces, and things like that, that are just really challenging to try to capture and get removed from the beach,” Juran said.

Rupert said the goal of the State Parks Department’s efforts isn’t to discourage people from celebrating the Fourth; it’s to ask them to be conscious of their surroundings.

“We want everyone to be safe, obviously, and enjoy themselves, but also be responsible, Ruppert said, “and think about the impact that not taking their garbage with them has on not only the health of the beach but just the impression that it leaves with the city that they’re coming to.”

If you want to participate, you can find more information on the CoastSavers website or other participating organizations’ websites.