Hey, Californians, you may not be able to resolve tragic overseas wars or heal our noxious national political divide, but you can clean up the mess in our own backyard. Specifically, our communal backyard, also known as the Pacific Coast.
Saturday is Coastal Cleanup Day all along California’s more than 1,200-mile shoreline. Volunteers will be fanning out on dozens of beaches (and inland waterways that feed into the ocean) to pick up trash and pay homage to our state’s most glorious natural resource.
The environmental group Heal the Bay has been coordinating the cleanups along the Los Angeles County coast for 36 years and, in 2025, the environmental group is offering 70 locations for people to aid in the massive cleanup.
It’s a small act people can engage in to push back against a tide of waste and perhaps against their own feelings of impotence in an unsettled world. Heal the Bay also strives to make doing good fun, with sign-ups for the cleanups, which include specialty events at several cleanup locations, which generally run from 9 a.m. until noon.
At the base of Rose Avenue in Venice, a group called Cinephiles for the Sea asks volunteers to mingle with fellow movie lovers as they scoop up cigarette butts and plastic bottles. In Redondo Beach, Heal the Bay volunteers will host a fisherman’s meet-up on the pier. All along the beach, the environmental group will place special items along the beach that can be redeemed for prizes.
In 2024, about 7,000 volunteers removed 18,000 pounds of pollutants and recyclables from the shoreline, parks and trails around Los Angeles County, Heal the Bay reported. Cigarette butts perennially “win” the derby as the most common item fouling local beaches, though bits of polystyrene, a.k.a. styrofoam, are also ubiquitous.
The waste pickup helps the county and environmental groups assess the impact of a more global problem — the proliferation of single-use plastics in things like beverage bottles and eating utensils. Plastics pollution has been shown to harm marine life and has been cited in some research has hurting human health.
The state of California has tried to limit single-use plastic, most notably with a 2022 law, SB 54, that called for plastic and packaging companies to reduce single-use plastic packaging by 25% and ensure that 65% of that material is recyclable and 100% either recyclable or compostable — all by 2032. But Gov. Gavin Newsom earlier this year slowed the writing of regulations to implement the law, with one of his aides citing the potentially high cost to consumers.
While the state works out those details, several cities have been moving forward with their own rules. Malibu was one of several cities banning single-use plastic utensils at restaurants. Patrons now eat their food with wooden forks, knives and spoons. The city of Los Angeles is working on a law that would force restaurants to use reusable/washable utensils.
A shift in public consciousness could drive changes, said Emily Parker, senior marine scientist at Heal the Bay. Some of that change is already evident — with the growing number of people who bring their own reusable containers to airports, arenas and other public places. Parker is working on “circular economy” solutions, emphasizing ways in which consumers can reduce their use of plastics and reuse containers and other plastic items.
The change will be part of a larger societal shift, Parker hopes, in which “we value the things that we have.”
“Instead of constantly taking things from the earth, making something new and then disposing of it, we need to find a way to use those items over and over again,” Parker said. “It’s better for our wallets, it’s better for our bodies, and it’s way better for the planet.”
The week’s biggest stories
Environmental issues and fires
Southern California Edison details how much it plans to pay Eaton fire victims.
Utility bills will increase as electric customers have to pay $9 billion more to state wildfire fund under proposed bill.
Mudslides trap drivers, 2-year-old missing in floodwaters as storm batters SoCal.
Fresno County’s Garnet fire burns into grove of giant sequoias.
California’s incarcerated firefighters, who earn about $1 per hour, may soon get a hefty raise.
Crime, courts and policing
Detectives try to retrace the final days of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas, whose body was found in a trunk.
MMA fighter Raja Jackson arrested following wrestling beatdown livestreamed at event.
Former Bay Area news anchor arrested for fourth time following altercation with daughter.
Celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos claims victory after $100K malpractice verdict is overturned.
Trump administration policies and reactions
Trump says China’s President Xi Jinping has approved a deal to save TikTok in the U.S.
RFK Jr.’s immunizations committee changed its childhood shots recommendations.
Federal judge is ‘inclined’ to order Trump to restore $500 million in UCLA research grants.
Dodgers great Clayton Kershaw announces retirement
Retirement will happen at season’s end.
‘I’m really at peace.’ Why Clayton Kershaw decided to make resurgent 2025 season his last.
Opinion: Clayton Kershaw retiring with legacy as the greatest Dodger ever.
Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension and fallout
Protesters pack outside ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ studio, calling for an end to censorship.
What fellow late night hosts Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers said about Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension.
More big stories
Five ‘illegal’ Laurel Canyon homes to be demolished after decades-long fight, L.A. says
People closest to Tyler Robinson made horrifying discoveries in hours after Charlie Kirk killing, authorities say.
Did Joshua Tree’s Invisible House charge $10,000 for a selfie? Here’s what the owner says.
Lawyers who hit L.A. City with whopping bill on homeless case to get millions more.
L.A. Yoshinoya workers walk out, describing cockroaches, leaky ceiling, dirty grills.
Getting married in L.A. County is getting more expensive. Here’s why.
This week’s must-reads
More great reads
They met at a festival. He was a sheriff’s deputy — and a stalker, her lawsuit claims.
‘I just wanted to help.’ Father turns to 9-year-old son for lifesaving stem cell donation.
Behind the decision to bench Jimmy Kimmel: Trump FCC threats and charges of corporate cowardice.
Opinion: You’re voting in a rigged game. That’s why Prop. 50 matters.
Opinion: A fringe on the right is twisting Charlie Kirk’s memory.
Opinion: Jimmy Kimmel and the threat that comedy poses to autocrats.
For your weekend
Going out
Enjoying historic Los Angeles: From redlining haven to tourist attraction, there is history and grace here. This must be Chinatown.
Preparing your Olympic experience: Here’s our guide to flights, hotels and tickets — and scoring the best deals.
Movie Review: ‘A Big Bold Beautiful Journey’ is a traumatic, star-driven road trip that runs out of gas, our critic says.
Divine dish: This cold bowl of noodles is all you may want to eat the rest of the summer.
Staying in
Book review: Novelist Ian McEwan posits the past is irretrievably past, particularly in matters of the heart, “What we can know.”
Biographical greats: Tennis legend Björn Borg recounts his heavy drug use, prostate cancer and recovery in memoir ‘Heartbeats’
Scheduled viewing: 16 TV shows we’re excited to watch this fall.
Recipes: Here’s a recipe for sweet chile chicken lettuce cups.
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Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Jim Rainey, staff writer
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, reporter
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
Diamy Wang, homepage intern
Izzy Nunes, audience intern