Heal the Bay Blog

Author: Heal the Bay

El Niño: Cities Ready to Save on a Rainy Day

02.03.2016 | Heal the Bay

In today’s guest blog post, Santa Monica College student Yasi Razban examines how local cities are preparing to take advantage of much-needed rain.

Feb. 3, 2016 — El Niño 2016 has arrived but much of the rain water that Southern Californians were hoping would ease the water crisis has gone to waste.

Heavy downpours earlier this year saw almost an inch and a half of rain falling at LAX – a new daily record. And this is just the beginning – warmer than usual ocean temperatures mean this El Niño is set to top the big one of 1997.

“An average 1-inch of rain from a storm can create about 1 billion gallons of runoff in L.A. County stormdrains. That’s about 120 Rose Bowls’ worth of dirty water that goes into the ocean,” says Dana Murray, Heal the Bay’s Senior Coastal Policy Manager.

Seems criminal for a state suffering through a five-year drought, that when much needed rain finally comes, it gurgles into stormdrains and heads straight out to sea. Especially as this El Niño is predicted to dump most of its precipitation in Southern California.

This exposes our biggest infrastructure problem.

Murray says 75 percent of California’s water storage infrastructure is located north of Fresno. Los Angeles County designed a stor water drainage system back in the 1930s built specifically to cope with our Mediterranean climate where rain falls almost exclusively during the winter. The end result is almost continuous paved-over surfaces from the mountains and foothills rimming L.A. County, through city streets to the beaches, creating what’s essentially a big concrete bowl tilted towards the ocean. What seemed like great planning then isn’t doing us any favors now.

The prolonged drought means every drop of available water counts so California is scrambling to realign its approach to water management on almost every level. Los Angelenos have gotten their daily water use down to 106 gallons per person. Orange County has a state of the art waste-water recycling plant. And there is serious consideration of costly desalination plants as a way to increase the water supply for our parched state.

The city of Santa Monica is aiming for water self sufficiency by 2020. An ambitious goal which is noteworthy because it relies heavily on catching 182.5 million gallons of rainwater per year before it runs into the ocean.

Here’s how they plan on doing it: Tanks will be installed to collect urban runoff and storm water that would otherwise flow off the Third Street Promenade area and city streets through storm drains into the ocean. One tank will be just north of the Santa Monica Pier in the Deauville Parking lot, a second will be installed adjacent to the City’s existing Civic Center, and a third will be at the City’s Memorial Park (14th Street and Olympic).

These tanks will connect to the Santa Monica Urban Runoff Recycling Facility (SMURRF) unit, where the water gets treated and then used for street cleaning, irrigation, and flushing toilets. Creating a local water supply while at the same time stopping all that bacteria laden untreated water from entering the ocean is good news for the health of Santa Monica Bay.

While the tanks won’t be in place for this El Niño, there are other water-saving projects going on in the county.

“We saved 400 million gallons of water from the beginning of El Niño with spreading grounds diverted throughout LA County,” states an LA Public Works official.

These water conservation facilities are located in areas where underlying soils are permeable enough for water to percolate into, then connect to an aquifer. However, this doesn’t get us out of the woods. Even though it’s hoped this El Niño will temporarily relieve drought effects, it’s too unpredictable of a force to be depended on to save us and its intensity may be dangerous if we don’t figure out the water situation.

“El Niño occurs about every 7 years alongside southern oscillation – the change of atmospheric pressure along the eastern and western Pacific,” says Murray. “A decrease in atmospheric pressure over the eastern Pacific leads to a decrease in the westward blowing trade winds towards the equator, which in turn allows warmer waters to travel east and north to the southwestern U.S. coastline.”

Warmer ocean temperatures exacerbate storms and this month’s record ocean temperatures – nearly 4 degrees warmer than average – are expected to give an additional boost to El Niño 2016, which will likely persist throughout spring. Warmer air temperatures intensify storms because warmer air holds more moisture.

This is where climate change comes into the picture – increased atmospheric carbon dioxide has driven overall global air temperature up by one degree already and ocean temperature is up too because a third of the excess heat has been absorbed by the ocean. Then there’s sea-level rise caused by climate change which leads to coastal erosion where we lose wetlands and swamps – the areas that can buffer the effects of a storm. All of the above can intensify an El Niño storm system resulting in “King” tides, storm surges, and flooding.

El Niño rain is going to affect some areas more harshly than others. Past El Niño have resulted in mudslides, erosion, and flooding. Homes in areas known to be at risk of mudslides will be the hardest hit, along with houses built on mountainsides or hills. Neighborhoods near L.A. stormdrains that have been clogged with trash and debris can also experience flooding. Intense and weird weather is predicted to be the new norm.

Places like California will experience more drought and intense El Niños, so we need to be prepared for all these possibilities. In the coming months, it will be important for the state and its residents to be more proactive with water on an individual and large-scale level. Whether it’s installing rain barrels at homes, or investing in local and state water-saving projects, it’s time to think of other ways to recycle water – and quick.

Local environmental champion and journalist Belinda Waymouth contributed to this report.

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A Peek at Heal the Bay’s New Strategic Plan

01.19.2016 | Heal the Bay

Marine Protected Areas News

Heal the Bay got its start as an all-volunteer organization in 1985, birthed in the Westwood living room of founding president Dorothy Green. Since then, Heal the Bay has matured into one of Southern California’s most effective environmental organizations, fueled by science, advocacy, community engagement, and education.

To ensure that we remain focused and that our day-to-day work aligns closely with our key goals, we recently completed a new strategic plan, thanks to a grant provided by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Here’s an (admittedly) detailed look at how we are organizing ourselves and our efforts over the next five years.

The following goals define our committment to improving the health and sustainability of greater L.A.:

To better protect public health, we will work to ensure that people can swim and fish at every beach in L.A. County without risk of getting sick.
To ensure a more sustainable water future, we will work to ensure that L.A. County sources 60% of its water locally through conservation and reuse by 2025.
To restore the vibrancy of our local ocean and watersheds, we will work to ensure that all greater L.A. coastal and river habitats are healthy.

To achieve these goals, we have aligned our work around three key pillars: thriving oceans, healthy watersheds, and smart water management.

The Santa Monica Bay and L.A.’s coastal waters have changed dramatically since Heal the Bay was founded in 1985. In the 1980s it was not uncommon for people to suffer illness from swimming at the beach. And, wildlife like brown pelicans and dolphins were a rare site in the Bay. The health of our Bay has come a long way, thanks to the largest wastewater treatment plan in L.A. – Hyperion – upgrading to advanced secondary treatment and the establishment of several Marine Protected Areas off our coast (both projects that Heal the Bay helped advance). But many dangers loom, from offshore oil drilling to plastic pollution. As L.A.’s local water watchdog, Heal the Bay staff and volunteers work hard to:

Restore, enhance, and protect ocean and coastal habitats, so that they are filled with life. You can help Heal the Bay’s staff scientists by joining our MPA Watch community-science program. We also work closely with researchers and agencies to evaluate climate change impacts to Southern California coastal environments and help coastal communities adapt to these changes.

Safeguard local coastal waters from pollution, while playing a watchdog role to protect against emerging threats. Stormwater is the biggest source of pollution to the Santa Monica Bay. With runoff comes all sorts of urban slobber – bacteria, motor oil, pesticides, trash, and other pollutants. Heal the Bay staff continue to fight against plastic pollution through education and proactive policies to protect aquatic life from confusing trash as food or becoming entangled in plastic that pollutes local waters.

Ensure that seafood caught for consumption in Santa Monica Bay is safe to eat. DDT- and PCB-laden runoff and wastewater discharged from the Montrose Chemical Corp. and other Southland-based industries from the 1940s-80s have resulted in a large swath of contaminated sediments off the coast of Palos Verdes. Since 2002, Heal the Bay staff have been educating anglers at piers throughout Los Angeles about what fish are safe to eat and which ones they should avoid. We are also working with researchers and agencies to better understand these pollution problems and advocate for clean-up and remediation.

Improve public knowledge about our local coast and ocean, and empower people to help protect them. Heal the Bay educates nearly 200,000 people each year through both formal and informal education programs. Come experience the Bay at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium and learn more about local wildlife. Or, join us for a monthly beach clean-up to learn about pollution and help keep trash from entering our local waterways.

Watersheds are areas of land that drain to common waterbodies – such as the Santa Monica Bay or the L.A. River. We all live in a specific watershed (there are 8 of them in L.A. County), and we all share responsibility for protecting the living water body it drains to. Waterways throughout greater L.A. are threatened by armoring, pollution, development in riparian habitat, flood control maintenance, and invasive species, among a host of other impacts. Heal the Bay is conducting research to better understand negative impacts to our watersheds and educating and mobilizing citizens to protect them. To achieve our goals, we need to:

Understand the current health of watersheds in L.A. County. In order to protect local watersheds, we have to know what is threatening the habitat, water quality, and aquatic life. Heal the Bay partners with researchers, NGOs, and volunteers to study these threats, including programs like our citizen science supported Stream Team. Once threats are identified, Heal the Bay works to advance policies, projects, and education to improve watershed health.

Connect communities to their rivers, streams, and wetlands. Hundreds of miles of rivers and streams throughout greater L.A. are paved with concrete channels. Although they may help with flood control, the viaducts serve as a barrier to the public. Many Angelenos don’t even know these channels are actually rivers. The few natural streams and rivers that exist here are havens for birds and plants. Through our urban education and outreach programs, Heal the Bay helps connect communities to local streams and waterways, so they can learn about the threats, see the benefits of watershed health, and help advocate for enhancement of their natural and built environment.

Advocate for enhancement and protection of riparian corridors and wetlands. Heal the Bay staff advocate before local and state agencies in an effort to pass policies and shape programs to enhance rivers and wetlands. Our work helped lead to the restoration of Malibu Lagoon in 2013, and there are new opportunities for the largest wetland restoration in the L.A. region with Ballona Wetlands.

Enhance public understanding about watershed health, and empower people to help protect it. Heal the Bay education and outreach staff work through a variety of programs to inform people about watershed health. Come check out the watershed exhibit at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, which features the tidewater goby, a federally endangered fish that inhabits local estuaries.

The record drought, coupled with climate change and other stressors, has called into question the practicality of importing nearly 90% of L.A.’s water supply. Continued reliance on imported water is an uncertain and dangerous proposition. We need to be smarter about using the water that we already have, which will benefit both local water supply and water quality. Here’s what we vow to do to advance more sustainable local water:

Ensure that beaches and waterways are safe for swimming. Millions of people visit California beaches each year, and no one should get sick from a day at the beach. That’s why Heal the Bay has been grading beaches on our Beach Report Card for over 20 years on an A-F scale to inform beachgoers about what beaches are clean for swimming and which ones to avoid. We also work with local and state government to find ways to clean up dirty beaches in the region. And we’re piloting a program with Stanford University to start forecasting water quality at historically troubled beaches.

Protect water quality throughout the region. Stormwater, or urban runoff, is the largest source of pollution to the Santa Monica Bay. By fighting for strong pollution limits and water quality regulations, Heal the Bay helps make sure local governments, industrial and commercial entities are accountable for their stormwater. Cleaning up local waterways benefits both people and aquatic life.

Improve the rate of water recycling. Each day wastewater treatment plants uselessly send hundreds of millions of gallons of highly treated wastewater into local rivers and the Pacific Ocean. Only a small percentage is recycled for industrial uses or irrigation. If more wastewater was treated to a higher standard, it could be recycled and substantially reduce the region’s reliance on imported water and simultaneously bolster regional water supplies. We continue to advocate for more projects and funding support to increase water recycling throughout the region.

Advance greater stormwater capture and reuse. Each day roughly 10 million gallons of urban runoff flows through L.A County stormdrains, picking up pollutants and eventually reaching the ocean without the benefit of any treatment. On a rainy day, that volume can escalate to 10 billion gallons. Our science and policy team is working to ensure stormwater management planning and implementation includes multi-benefit solutions that improve greenspace, beautify communities, and capture water onsite for reuse or recharging groundwater. This includes working with state and local governments to find creative ways to fund stormwater programs.

Advocate for alternatives to desalination. It’s a common suggestion to turn to the ocean as a water source in water scarce times. Many people don’t realize that desalination is an energy-intensive, inefficient technology that threatens marine life. Heal the Bay is working to advance conservation and expansion of local water sources, such as stormwater cleansing and reuse, and wastewater recycling to avoid turning to desalination.

Create greater public understanding about water quality and supply, and empower people to advocate for a cleaner and more reliable water future. Where does our water come from? Especially in a large region like greater L.A.? If you’re feeling sheepish that you don’t know the answer, most Angelenos don’t either. Heal the Bay educators will be working with partners through our new “Dropping Knowledge” community-outreach project to educate Angelenos in Korean, Spanish, and English about how to maximize local water. We can’t expect people to be part of the solution to our water woes if they don’t understand the problem.

As you can see, we’ve got our work cut out for us. If you’d like to make a contribution toward a cleaner ocean and healthier L.A., please click below.

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2016: A Preview of Key Action Items in Coming Year

12.24.2015 | Heal the Bay

News

Jan. 1, 2016 — Here’s an early look at some of the key issues we will be tracking in the coming year. If we are to be successful, we need your support.

Ballona Wetlands Restoration

The Issue: The Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve is nearly 600 acres of open space between LAX and Marina del Rey. A historically thriving wetland, it has suffered decades of degradation from development, dumping of sediments, disconnection from creek flows, and assault from invasive plants.

What’s at Stake: Approximately 95% of Southern California’s wetlands have been lost. Much of the remaining wetland habitat in our densely urbanized region is highly degraded. With the proposed Ballona Wetlands restoration project, we have the opportunity to restore natural function at one of L.A.’s largest wetlands.

Why we are focused on it: Wetlands provide nursery, shelter, and feeding grounds for fish and wildlife. They purify water through filtration of pollutants, recycle nutrients, and help buffer against impacts associated with climate change. Restoring ecological function at Ballona will not only benefit our local environment, but also serve as a place for public education and enjoyment.

Next steps: The Department of Fish and Wildlife will be releasing a draft environmental impact report this winter, analyzing several options for restoring Ballona Wetlands. Heal the Bay staff scientists will review the report and provide public guidance and recommendations.

Plastic Bag Referendum

The Issue: In 2014, California became the first state in the nation to enact plastic bag ban legislation through SB 270, which prohibits grocery stores, convenience stores, and pharmacies from distributing free single-use plastic bags, and requires stores to charge a minimum of 10 cents for paper and reusable bags. Looking to protect its profits, Big Plastic is pouring millions of dollars into an effort to undo the historic ban through a ballot initiative in November 2016.

What’s at stake: Plastic bags, designed only to be used for minutes, commonly make their way into streams, rivers, and oceans, where they never truly degrade. Plastic pollution can kill wildlife that mistake it for food or become entangled in it. Plastic bags are also a costly nuisance: California spends an estimated $25 million a year to collect and dispose of discarded plastic bags, according to CalRecycle.

Why we are focused on it: Plastic bags have become a gateway issue in the nation, compelling people to think about how their consumer habits can affect the environment. This common-sense ban not only saves money and the ocean, it has led to positive behavior change for millions of Californians. We can’t go back now.

Next steps: Californians will vote on the future of the plastic bag ban at the polls on November 8’s general election. You can help by pledging to vote YES on Prop 67!

Smarter Water Management

The Issue: The record drought, coupled with climate change and other stressors, has called into question the practicality of importing nearly 90% of L.A.’s water supply from other regions. Continued reliance on imported water is an uncertain and dangerous proposition. Instead, our region needs to be smarter about maximizing the water that we already have.

What’s at Stake: Each day roughly 10 million gallons of urban runoff flows through L.A. County stormdrains, picking up pollutants and carrying them to the ocean without the benefit of any treatment. On a rainy day that number escalates to nearly 10 billion gallons of water, and associated urban slobber, flowing to the sea. Even on a dry day, wastewater treatment plants needlessly send hundreds of millions of gallons of highly treated and usable water into local rivers and the Pacific Ocean.

Why we are focused on it: Beneficially reusing this water through wastewater recycling and stormwater capture and reuse serves two benefits – building local water resiliency and cleaning up our local waterways. If we are smarter about reusing local water, we can also avoid turning to the ocean for a water source through desalination, which is costly, energy intensive, and threatens sea life.

Next steps: Our policy team is working to ensure stormwater management includes multi-benefit solutions that improve greenspace, beautify communities, and capture water onsite for reuse or recharging groundwater. We are also working with state and local governments to find creative ways to fund projects and programs to reuse and recycle stormwater and wastewater.

We have a lot of work to do in 2016, but contributions from ocean-lovers like you can make it happen.

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Looking Back on Big Wins in 2015

12.17.2015 | Heal the Bay

News Nick Gabaldón Day

December 17, 2015 — 2015 was truly a year of extremes for the Bay. From defeating a dangerous proposal to drill for oil in Hermosa Beach to holding city agencies accountable following a sewage spill at Hyperion, Heal the Bay defended its title as the premier protector of Los Angeles’ ocean and watersheds. It was also our 30th Anniversary–and we definitely proved that 30 year-olds still pack a serious punch! Read on for a recap of Heal the Bay’s greatest hits of 2015, and scroll to the bottom to make an important year-end donation to keep us going in 2016.

Keeping Big Oil Out of Our Bay

What we did: Our staff and volunteers mobilized a grassroots campaign to defeat Measure O, which would have allowed an oil company to drill underneath the ocean in Hermosa Beach. Thanks to our community outreach and concerted advocacy, voters rejected the harmful project by a nearly 7-to-1 margin last May.

Why it matters: Opening up the Bay for oil exploration would have not only posed great environmental risks, it would have set a dangerous precedent for further industrial exploitation of our local shorelines.

Protecting the Health of Beachgoers

What we did: Working with Stanford University, we launched a new beach water-quality forecasting model this summer, allowing us to predict when local beaches should be closed because of bacterial pollution. Buoyed by our successful pilot at three beaches, we hope to secure funding to expand predictive modeling statewide.

Why it matters: More advance public notification about troubled beaches will better safeguard the millions of people who visit California beaches each year.

Holding Polluters Accountable

What we did: We demanded answers following a horrifying sewage spill from the Hyperion treatment plant that left South Bay beaches closed for four days and littered with used condoms, tampons and hypodermic needles. We provided constant online updates to the general public, alerted media, and spurred members of the L.A. City Council and the Regional Water Quality Control Board to demand formal contingency plans to prevent future mishaps.

Why it matters: Our advocacy team remains the first and foremost watchdog of the Bay, holding officials’ feet to the fire when warranted to guarantee that our coastline remains safe, healthy and clean.

Guarding Our Few Remaining Wetlands

What we did: Working with a coalition of partners, our staff scientists published a comprehensive set of guidelines for the restoration of Southern California’s quickly dwindling wetlands. The 9-tenet protocol establishes clear and non-negotiable principles for rehabilitating special places like the Ballona Wetlands, which are scheduled to undergo what will likely be a contentious restoration in the next two years.

Why it matters: Highly urbanized Southern California has already lost 95% of its wetlands, which provide critical habitat for plants and animals. They also supply much needed ecosystem benefits like flood control, water purification, fish nurseries, bird watching and other educational opportunities.

Educating and Inspiring Southern Californians

What we did: Heal the Bay hit two important milestones in our 30-year mission to empower environmental stewards throughout California. In 2015, we welcomed our 1 millionth visitor to our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, and participants at our all-volunteer beach cleanups picked up our 2 millionth pound of trash.

Why it matters: Scientific studies and regulatory frameworks can only get us so far. Meaningful change in our region requires participation and passion from people and communities who love our beaches and watersheds.

We love what we do, and we’re proud to be the watchdog of Santa Monica Bay. If you value a cleaner ocean and healthier inland communities, please make a year-end donation today.

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Holiday Hours, Offers at Our S.M. Pier Aquarium

12.09.2015 | Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay Aquarium

December 17, 2015 — Sleigh bells ring…holiday tunes play…everyone wants to sell you peppermint bark…is it really snowing on that corner of Santa Monica Boulevard?

Our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium has the perfect antidote for the holidaze: A break with the marine life at the Aquarium. (Gazing at fish is a soothing experience, trust us!) We’ve got special holiday hours the last two weeks of 2015. You can drop by Dec. 22-24, between 2 and 5 p.m. We’ll all take a holiday on Dec. 25, but from Dec. 26-31, you and out-of-town guests can visit us from 12:30-5 p.m. We’ll wish all a Happy New Year on the 31st, remain closed New Year’s Day, and reopen with our regular winter schedule beginning at 12:30 p.m. Jan. 2.

Special Holiday Hours!
Closed Dec. 25
Open Dec. 26 through Dec. 31 from 12:30 – 5:00 pm
Closed Jan 1, 2016

A visit to the Aquarium can also solve the problem of what to get for the hard-to-buy for folks on your list. Consider making a donation to Heal the Bay in a special someone’s name or give the unique gift of Aquadoption, the program that underwrites the daily care of our marine life along with a yearlong membership to Heal the Bay, which includes free family admission to the Aquarium to visit your adopted animal for the full year.

For a limited time during the holiday season, the Aquarium is offering its round stingrays for adoption. And for a special holiday price, a plush stuffed animal stingray (incredibly cuddly, no sharp stinger on this cutie) is included in the adoption package. Four other animals exhibited at the Aquarium are available for “aquadoption” year-round; the stingray will only be featured for the month of December.

Arrange an Aquadoption by registering online, during a visit to the Aquarium at 1600 Ocean Front Walk, beach level, beneath the Carousel building, or by calling 310-393-6149, ext. 114 for more information.

From all the folks and the fishes at the Aquarium, Happy Holidays!

Aquadoption at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium

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Dig Sand Crabs? Join Our Citizen Scientist Squad

11.18.2015 | Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay Aquarium Santa Monica

Nov. 19, 2015 — This blog was written by Taylor Spesak, Public Programs Intern, and Catherine Hoffman, Programs Coordinator, at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium.

Beneath your toes at the beach are thousands of sand crabs just trying to make it through the day. Most beachgoers walk right over them without a care, but Santa Monica Pier Aquarium citizen scientists are eager to find them!

Heal the Bay recently partnered with the statewide LiMPETS program to bring sand crab monitoring to the Santa Monica shoreline just outside the Aquarium’s doors. This program activates people along the entire California coast to do real science through hands-on data collection.

But…why do we care about sand crabs? For starters, they can tell scientists a lot about the sandy beach ecosystem. For example, if there is a low number of crabs during a collection, water quality may be poor or a high number of predators may be snacking on the sand crabs. The list could go on and on. By simply counting these overlooked creatures, scientists can make conclusions about the entire ecosystem’s overall health.

Citizen scientists from the Aquarium are focusing on sand crabs specifically in the area around the Santa Monica Pier. We’re examining several factors that may be affecting the number of crabs present, like how long it’s been since a heavy rain and whether the sample spot is under the Pier. We’ve already noticed that there seem to be more crabs during dry spells and more crabs directly under the Pier.

The findings are intriguing, and we look forward to analyzing more data. That’s where you come in!

Experienced or not, anyone can be a citizen scientist, and we’d love to do science with you. As long as the tides are low, the surf isn’t too aggressive, and there is no rain we will be out collecting data every Wednesday at 3:00pm. No training required! Meet us at the Aquarium and we’ll then head down to the beach to collect our sand crabs. This program can also be used as a service or linked learning opportunity for middle and high school students. An AP Environmental Studies class from Los Angeles Academy of Arts and Enterprise has already helped us collect great data.

So come get crabby with us on Wednesday, November 25, at 3pm and kick off your citizen science career under the Pier!

For more information, please email Catherine Hoffman at choffman@healthebay.org.

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Thank You Thursday 11-5-15

11.04.2015 | Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay Aquarium Santa Monica

With a predicted El Niño “too big to fail” heading for Southern California, we proclaimed Oct. 11-17 El Niño Week to help us all understand what causes this meteorological phenomenon, offer tips to prepare, and explore the ways that expected heavy rains can be turned to our advantage. We have a number of folks and establishments to thank for their help and support in making El Niño Week a success.

Thanks to WaterLA’s Melanie Winter who led a conversation at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium about water and land use in L.A and to RainReserve for demonstrating the myriad devices available for capturing rainwater.

We’re also grateful to Bill Patzert, a scientist at the California Institute of Technology’s NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, for giving an informative and entertaining talk to a packed room at the Aquarium. Patzert managed to have the crowd in stitches as he explained the science behind an El Niño.

And finally, a huge thank you to the five local establishments that got into the spirit of the week by creating El Niño inspired cocktails and pledging a portion of the proceeds to Heal the Bay from each clever concoction sold throughout El Niño Week. Thanks to these restaurants: The Lobster, Cassia, Hotel Casa del Mar’s Terrazza Lounge, Locanda del Lago, and Rusty’s Surf Ranch.

We love Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos at Heal the Bay, and at our Aquarium we celebrate with a weekend-long Fishy Fest. The annual event is made all the more festive thanks to the City of Santa Monica’s Resource Recovery and Recycling division’s contribution of gently used and brand new costumes. A parade of ghosts and goblins along the Pier is a favorite feature of the weekend, and the trick or treating made all the sweeter by our participating neighbors: Rusty’s Surf Ranch, The Albright, Blazing Saddles, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Pacific Park.

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Fall 2015 Youth Summit

10.23.2015 | Heal the Bay

News

On Sunday October 11th, over 25 students representing nine different middle and high school environmental clubs crept into the closed-to-the-public Santa Monica Pier Aquarium for an after-hours workshop. Find out what fishy fun they had below.

As the school year leaps off into predictions of a wet El Niño winter and a deluge of sewage-related waste being released into the bay from a local sewage treatment plant, it’s clear that environmental clubs have their work cut out for them.

But where to start? It can be easy to highlight a problem but far less clear on how to choose and plan an action to help it. Clubs brainstormed their goals for the school year and then grouped them into themes common across all clubs. Some examples were “Smarter Members and Smarter Schools,” in which education on current environmental issues is key; “Alternatives at School” which tackles changing the way schools do things; “Cleanups” which can be completed from coast to campus; and “Awareness Through Social Media,” where dedicated accounts can keep members and followers up-to-date with club happenings.

Choosing S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound) tasks or projects is crucial to seeing your goals blossom. The group was lucky to hear from three youth leaders who’ve all completed dynamic projects in the past. From cleanups and fundraising, to youth boards and media interviews, Ben Moody, Fallon Rabin and Paige Hornbaker had great tips to share with the group.

Fall Youth Summit The summit wrapped up with time for each club to reflect on what proposed projects would suit their vision for the year and then plot those goals onto a calendar of the school year. As a registered Club Heal the Bay Partner, clubs also learned that participating in three events or netting three reward “drops” would earn them an invitation to our Beachy Celebration which we will host at the end of the school year.

Whether it’s educating their own peers, spreading environmental awareness through social media alerts, or fundraising within their communities or local businesses, clubs from all grade levels and with varying membership bases strategized how to make a big splash this school year.

See you at the beach!

Jenn Swart
Programs Associate

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Meet Dr. Patzert: The Surfing El Niño Geek

10.08.2015 | Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay Aquarium

Bill Patzert may be a JPL super-scientist and El Niño geek, but he really is a fun guy, says Heal the Bay vp Sarah Sikich. Come hear him speak next week at our Aquarium.

I’m very excited to announce that Dr. Bill Patzert, a leading climatologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will be joining us for El Niño week at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium on Oct. 13 for a feature presentation, “Whiplash: From Super Drought to El Niño.” Dr. Patzert’s forecasting prowess has earned him the nickname “Prophet of California Climate.” His work involves improving our understanding of Earth’s climate and important environmental problems ranging from El Niño, La Niña and longer-term climate forecasts. I’ve enjoyed talking with and learning from Dr. Patzert at meetings and science forums over the past several years. With a quick wit and fresh sciencey style, he makes forecasting and environmental science fun. He also loves to surf! He joined me for a little appetizer Q&A to get you ready for the special event:

What piqued your interested in science, and compelled you to pursue it as a career?

My dad was a sea captain and taught me celestial navigation, shooting the stars and the sun with a sextant. At night he would point out the North Star and the many constellations and tell me about the mythology of each. This was heady stuff and fascinating for a budding geek. Many men and women have inspired me. My parents were supportive and stimulating. They loved ideas, education and the natural world. Many of my mentors and professors were superb. And, reading Rachel Carson’s “The Sea Around Us” opened new worlds to me. I also had the good fortune to spend a week with the late Arthur C. Clark at his home in Sri Lanka. Wow, what a great guy! He encouraged me to be fearless and let my imagination soar.

You received your Ph.D. in Hawaii?! You must have taken some study breaks to enjoy the beach. Do you have a favorite beach or snorkel spot on the islands?

Honestly, I chose Hawaii for graduate school so I could surf (which I did and still do), check out the ladies at Waikiki and blast my eardrums with the great music of the 60’s – The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, etc. I surfed and dove every Hawaiian Island and much of the South Pacific. It was sweet!

El Niño vs. The Blob: who wins?

El Niño trumps The Blob. Come to my talk to find out why.

With the recent discovery of water on Mars, have you considered taking your oceanography skills to space?

There is no space more important than Earth space. I’ve got my hands full here at home. I follow and admire the research of my Martian buddies here at JPL, but fending off man-made climate change keeps me Earth bound.

What are your hobbies when you need a break from climatology?

I’m a reader, a mystery junkie. Mysteries are addictive! Good historical novels are a treat, too. I collect art of all types… my tastes are eclectic. I have Mexican folk art, Japanese prints, Persian rugs and, my prize collection – Hawaiian surf shirts. For exercise, I do some biking, romantic walks on the beach, some swimming and surfing, and have good intentions of being fitter. And, I raise cacti and succulents. I love HBO.

You can read more about Patzert’s take on the coming El Niño, which he describes as “too big to fail,” in this week’s interview with the Los Angeles Times.

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Thank You Thursday 9-24-15

09.24.2015 | Heal the Bay

Santa Monica

We couldn’t do our work without the committed volunteers that are the backbone of Heal the Bay. This is especially true in the month of September, when we coordinate Coastal Cleanup Day for LA County.

On September 19th, 9,475 volunteers removed 21,310 pounds of trash from over 60 miles of territory (including three underwater sites). A huge thank you to everyone who cleaned our beaches, parks and waterways on a sweltering Saturday, and to the LA County Board of Supervisors and the Coastal Cleanup Day site captains.

We are so grateful to our sponsors:

Mattel, REI, City of Santa Monica, LA Department of PublicWorks, the California Coastal Commission, Anheuser-Busch InBev, simplehuman, Union Bank, and Kaiser Permanente.

The Wednesday before Coastal Cleanup Day, Heal the Bay gives more than 700 students from underserved schools a day at the beach, where they learn about ocean conservation through a series of games by the shore and visit the marine life at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium It’s all-hands on deck for this action packed day, and by the time the kids are back on their buses, staff and volunteers have worked up an impressive appetite. Thanks to Grey Block Pizza, we weren’t hungry for long. The donation of a variety of delicious pies was greatly appreciated.

And it was so neighborly – and generous – of Rusty’s Surf Ranch on the Pier to name our Aquarium as their beneficiary during Santa Monica’s Buy Local/Get Local week. Rusty’s donated a portion of the week’s sales to the Aquarium.

Heal the Bay will receive proceeds from General Admission of Venice’s sales at this weekend’s Abbot Kinney Festival as well.

And lastly, thanks to the Environmental Learning Center at Hyperion for hosting our Speaker’s Bureau training this August. Congrats to the 19 new volunteers who graduated from the training.

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