LOS ANGELES, CA – In celebration of Plastic Free July, Ocean Conservancy is calling for volunteers to join a #TeamSeas cleanup on Saturday, July 16, at Dockweiler beach in Playa Del Ray, California.

#TeamSeas is a viral campaign spearheaded by YouTubers MrBeast and Mark Rober that successfully raised more than 30 million dollars to remove more than 30 million pounds of trash from beaches and waterways. Ocean Conservancy is one of two beneficiaries of the campaign and is mobilizing its International Coastal Cleanup® (ICC) network to help reach the 30 million pound removal goal. In less than six months, more than 40,000 volunteers across dozens of countries have collected nearly 4.5 million pounds of trash through local beach cleanup efforts.

Plastic is one of the most visible and most prolific threats facing our ocean today; it’s also one of the most preventable. Every year, millions of tons of trash—including an estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic waste—flows into the ocean, entangling wildlife, polluting beaches, and costing coastal municipalities hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.

California is a leader in tackling the ocean plastic problem: just last month, the state passed the single strongest plastics legislation ever seen in the United States. In 2019 alone, more than 70,000 Californians cleaned 1.2 million pounds of plastic pollution and other trash from beaches and waterways as part of California’s annual Coastal Cleanup Day and the ICC.

• WHAT: #TeamSeas beach cleanup activated by Ocean Conservancy
• WHO: The following representatives will participate in the cleanup and be available for interview. All media interested in attending the cleanup must RSVP to Madeline Black at [email protected].
  • Nicholas Mallos, Vice President of Conservation for Ocean Plastics, Ocean Conservancy
  • Allison Schutes, Director of the International Coastal Cleanup, Ocean Conservancy
  • Up to 250 volunteers are welcome to participate in the cleanup.
• WHERE: Dockweiler Beach, Tower 54 Vista Del Mar, El Segundo, CA 90245
• WHEN: Sat, July 16, 2022, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM PDT.

Note: Volunteers can register via Eventbrite. Photos from past #TeamSeas cleanup activated by Ocean Conservancy and local partners can be found here.

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About Ocean Conservancy’s Trash Free Seas® Program: Ocean Conservancy has led the fight for a clean, healthy ocean free of trash since 1986, when the U.S.-based nonprofit launched its annual International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). Since then, Ocean Conservancy has mobilized millions of ICC volunteers to remove trash from beaches and waterways around the world while pioneering upstream solutions to the growing ocean plastics crisis. Ocean Conservancy invests in cutting-edge scientific research, implements on-the-ground projects, and works with conservationists, scientists, governments, the private sector and members of the public to change the plastics paradigm. To learn more about our Trash Free Seas® program visit oceanconservancy.org/trashfreeseas

About Ocean Conservancy

Ocean Conservancy is working to protect the ocean from today’s greatest global challenges. Together with our partners, we create evidence-based solutions for a healthy ocean and the wildlife and communities that depend on it. For more information, visit oceanconservancy.org, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.