Operation Clean Sweep Volunteers “Dive In” to Keep Santa Barbara Harbor Clean
Source: City of Santa Barbara
Like the floors in many college dorm rooms, the seafloor in a busy harbor can be littered with lost or discarded junk. And just like on land, litter in the ocean can negatively impact the environment. Ever wonder, “What’s down there, where does it come from, and does anybody ever clean it up?”
On Saturday, May 7, 2022 you can find out.
Santa Barbara Harbor’s Operation Clean Sweep, a seafloor debris cleanup program, will hold its 14th annual event on Saturday, May 7. A team of volunteer divers, supported by 40 or so volunteer dock workers, will remove junk from beneath the Marina 1, A-F fingers. Divers will locate the junk and dock volunteers will haul it up and cart it off for disposal. The event begins at 8:00 a.m., with a briefing on the Travel Lift Pier beneath the Harbormaster’s Office, complete with free coffee and donuts, and concludes with a hearty box lunch at 11:30 a.m.
During past events, volunteers have removed over twenty tons of debris from Santa Barbara Harbor. Items retrieved during past years ranged from bicycles, barbeques, plastic barrels, and boat propellers to wire cages, outboard engines, phones, computers, and the occasional marine battery.
The City of Santa Barbara’s Waterfront Department joins volunteers from NOAA, Santa Barbara Maritime Museum, Santa Barbara Channel keeper, Santa Barbara Sail and Power Squadron, and Salty Dog Dive Service in this effort.
For more information about the event or to volunteer, call Chris Bell at (805) 897-1962 or visit www.santabarbaraca.gov/cleansweep.
5 Comments
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Apr 29, 2022 07:16 PMThank goodness the cruise ships don't pull into the actual marina area. The sewage dumping alone would be horrendous; even the gray water from them would change the durrent habitat.
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Apr 29, 2022 01:36 PMThe scores of large container ships transiting the channel daily spew much more pollution than the occasional cruise ship.
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Apr 29, 2022 09:30 AMI've got about 5 cell phones down there. I feel awful for the pollution.
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Apr 28, 2022 03:36 PMWhile it is great to clean up the actual harbor (thank you to all the participants), the real cleaning of house needs to begin at 132 Harbor Way A, Santa Barbara, CA 93109. At that address are a bunch of bad policy and bad policy makers with high pay that do little to make the harbor a better place for residents. 132 Harbor Way A occupants have sold out the harbor to the highest bidders at every turn, and have made a playground for elite wealthy outsiders with tons of money. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PRESENCE OF THE FLOATING AND POLLUTING BLIGHT COMMONLY KNOWN AS CRUISE SHIPS. For a few bucks a head for passengers to the City of Santa Barbara, the residents of Santa Barbara get left holding the bag called environmental pollution.
A true dumpster fire in every sense of the term.
Here is a link to people that care and want to hear from you:
sbcitycouncil@santabarbaraca.gov
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Apr 28, 2022 05:27 PMAgree. I have seen the black smoke belching out. It is disgusting.