Coastal Cleanup Day 2025 Santa Barbara County

Isn’t it time to show your favorite beach or creek some love? Join us for Coastal Cleanup Day on Saturday, September 20th from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. An international day of volunteer action, Coastal Cleanup Day gives community members a chance to give back to the beautiful beaches that make Santa Barbara County such a wonderful place to live. Get outside, enjoy nature, and help remove marine debris from our beaches and waterways.

Volunteers of all ages are welcome to participate at any of the cleanup sites. Pre-registration is encouraged, but not required.

Everyone who participates in the cleanup is required to complete a waiver. This can be done on the day of the event, or by downloading a waiver and bringing it with you.

If you can't make it to one of the cleanup locations on Saturday, the 20th, you can do self-led cleanups anytime during the month of September and your litter data will be included in our Coastal Cleanup Day results!

Please select your favorite site. Each location will have a Site Captain on hand to provide necessary instructions and supplies. All volunteers are encouraged to bring their own reusable gloves, bags or buckets, and water bottles to reduce waste and minimize the plastic footprint of the cleanup.

For this year's County Coastal Cleanup Day, everyone will be using paper tally sheets which you can pick up from your Site Captain. This will help us improve the accuracy of our data reporting.

Santa Barbara County Coastal Cleanup Day is coordinated by Explore Ecology and our partner the County of Santa Barbara’s Resource Recovery & Waste Management Division. The event is also supported by the Cities of Goleta, Solvang, and Santa Barbara. Coastal Cleanup Day is a worldwide event organized by the Ocean Conservancy. The California Coastal Commission organizes the event throughout the state.

Visit Explore Ecology's website for more information at ExploreEcology/Coastal-Cleanup-Day.org

FAQs

Are there minimum age requirements to participate?

Volunteers of all ages are welcome. Volunteers under the age of 18 are required to have a waiver signed by an adult. If an adult is not coming with you, please have a parent or guardian sign the form in advance and bring it with you. (You can download waivers on our website: Coming Soon!)

Visit Explore Ecology's website for more information at ExploreEcology/Coastal-Cleanup-Day.org Or email CoastalCleanupDay (at) ExploreEcology.org.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

You don't have to bring your ticket. Your registration helps us keep track of how many people are attending cleanups at each site.

Where should I park?

Parking varies by location. Please check each site for specifics.

Can I sign up a group?

Yes, please! Coastal Cleanup Day is a great volunteer opportunity for groups.

Can I go by myself?

Yes, please join us!

What should I bring?

There will be some cleanup supplies at each site. Explore Ecology is encouraging volunteers to BYO- bring your own reusable gloves, bags or buckets, and reusable water bottles to reduce waste to help decrease the plastic footprint of the cleanup.

We recommend wearing closed-toed shoes and comfortable clothing. We also encourage you to bring a reusable water bottle, wear sunscreen, and other sun protection like hats or sunglasses.

Can I receive community service hours?

Of course! Please bring your forms and have your Site Captain sign them after the cleanup so you can get your community service hours.

Is registration required?

Registration is not required, but is strongly encouraged. Your registration helps us keep track of how many attendees each site receives and adds you to our email list so you receive updates about Coastal Cleanup Day and our other cleanups.

Can I be a Site Captain?

Coastal Cleanup Day is possible because of our dedicated Site Captains. If you or your organization is interested, please contact Explore Ecology at: CoastalCleanupDay (at) ExploreEcology.org or call (805)884-0459 x16. The site you request may already have a captain, but we will do our best to accomodate you.

Host or Publisher Explore Ecology