Ton of brush cleared near La Jolla’s Starkey Park for Coastal Cleanup Day

Nearly a ton of dry brush, overhanging tree limbs and debris were cleared out of a section of the La Jolla Bike Path by more than a dozen volunteers Sept. 20.

The event was part of the countywide Coastal Cleanup Day presented by I Love a Clean San Diego, supplementing the Kiwanis Club of La Jolla and La Jolla Parks & Beaches group’s bike path cleanup efforts.

“Generally we do our own volunteer work throughout the year, but when it comes to I Love a Clean San Diego, we partner with them because they are a huge organization,” said La Jolla volunteer Debbie Adams. “They can provide dumpsters and social media for us — that sort of thing.”

I Love a Clean San Diego is an environmentally focused nonprofit organization founded just over 70 years ago. Throughout its history it has pushed programs for litter cleanups and encouraged San Diego residents to reduce waste.

More than 3,500 volunteers participated in cleanups across San Diego County on Sept. 20. Preliminary data indicates that 37,052 pounds of trash, 5,306 pounds of recyclables and 22,837 pounds of green waste were collected that day.

At the La Jolla Bike Path, dry brush was hauled in a truck to trash bins between 9 a.m. and noon, with a mix of youths and adults pruning the upper side of Starkey Park.

Among that group were students Jackson Ryan and Victoria Olivares.

Jackson, a senior at The Bishop’s School in La Jolla, said he participated to help reach his school-required 80 hours of community service. Also, he often used the bike path while growing up in Bird Rock and north Pacific Beach.

Jackson noted the sense of community on display during the event.

“The amount of people who helped was kind of cool, even with just showing up and bringing a shovel,” he said. “People biking by were like, ‘I can bring some tools by if you need anything.’” Everyone … just wanted to help each other out.”

Victoria, a junior at La Jolla High School and leader of the Environmental Action Club on campus, was joined by three of her LJHS peers.

“I’m a really big STEM [science, technology, engineering and math] person and I really appreciate biology in general,” Victoria said. “After attending some protests over the last couple of months, I kind of realized there would be nothing for me, as a biologist, to look at if Earth was in shambles.”

Adams praised the participating students for their efforts.

“The kids are terrific,” she said. “We have teams year-round from all the local schools, everyone ages 12 and up and some little kids, too, that help us with simpler tasks. They are great workers, and it’s good because it’s educating them on the importance of the environment.

“The whole goal is to make that bike path environmentally friendly and safe. So the more we can educate the youth about it, the more they’ll help take care of it.”

This wasn’t the only major cleanup effort at the bike path and Starkey Park this year. On Feb. 1, 25 community members gathered to dispose of thick vegetation and other potential fire hazards between the north boundary of the park and the condominiums nearby.

Adams described the day as “an all-out effort” as the group spent five hours trimming foliage, picking up trash and stuffing everything into a roll-off garbage bin provided by the city of San Diego. By the end of the day, the bin was “completely filled,” according to Kiwanis Club member Glen Rasmussen.

Kiwanis carries the financial responsibility and insurance for events such as these, while La Jolla Parks & Beaches assembles volunteers from schools and neighborhoods. The organizations have a right-of-entry permit from the city that grants them permission to perform cleanups year-round as needed.

Work on the La Jolla Bike Path, largely supported by private donations through the Kiwanis Club, aims to keep the path clear of debris and protruding vegetation, reduce fire risk by clearing dry brush, replace invasive species with natural plants, curb erosion and educate the public about the importance of preservation.

Tax-deductible donations to the bike path efforts can be made at kiwanisclublajolla.org or P.O. Box 81, La Jolla, CA 92038, with the designation “Bike path fund.”