Jul 06, 2018 | Associated Press
RENO, Nev. (AP) — Almost 500 people turned out for a July 5 clean-up campaign at five Lake Tahoe beaches in what organizers have made an annual post-Independence Day event.
League to Save Lake Tahoe spokesman Chris Carney tells the Reno Gazette-Journal that volunteers picked up almost 1,500 pounds of litter Thursday from Commons Beach in Tahoe City and Kings, Keva, Nevada and Regan beaches in South Lake Tahoe.
The 7-ton haul included more than 8,000 cigarette butts and 18,000 pieces of single-use plastic cups, lids, bottle caps and food wrappers.
Participants came from California and Nevada city and state agencies, the U.S. Forest Service and businesses including nearby ski areas and recreational rental firms.
Officials noted that a ban on take-out restaurant polystyrene goes into effect products in South Lake Tahoe in October.
Further Reading
This story was reported by various news outlets including:
- KeepTahoeBlue.org – “Tahoe’s beaches are an amazing treasure, but they often suffer from overuse, especially during the summer. That’s why one of the League’s strongest volunteer programs is conducting beach cleanups throughout the summer and fall. We often partner with other nonprofit groups, agencies, or corporations. Contact us to become involved. In 2017, volunteers at our cleanups removed over 4,010 pounds of trash and cleaned over 28 miles of Lake Tahoe’s shoreline.” [More…]
- News 4 – “1,458 pounds of trash was removed from five beaches. Of the nearly 1,500 pounds of trash, 8,000 cigarette butts and 18,000 pieces of plastic were removed.” [More…]
- San Francisco Chronicle – “Lake Tahoe was packed over the Fourth of July holiday, and the revelers left behind a big mess, littering beaches with plastic water bottles, beer cans, watermelon rinds, lone flip-flops, wine bottles and cigarette butts.Nearly 500 volunteers with Keep Tahoe Blue picked up 1,458 pounds of trash on July 5, walking 6 miles of beach including Commons Beach in Tahoe City, Kings Beach, Kiva Beach, Nevada Beach and Regan Beach in South Lake Tahoe. As in years past, single-use plastics were the most commonly found trash item, including 8,061 cigarette butts and 18,235 pieces of plastic, including cups, lids, bottle caps and food wrappers.” [More…]
- Tahoe Daily Tribune – “Fourth of July festivities left mounds of cans, bottles, cigarette butts and plastic on Lake Tahoe’s shorelines, hundreds of volunteers gathered at five beaches for the League to Save Lake Tahoe’s annual July 5 beach cleanup.” [More…]