Washington Coast Cleanup 2013: April 20th!

Calling all volunteers! Online registration is now open for this year's Washington Coast Cleanup, to be held on April 20th. Help save your favorite beach from the harm of marine debris and enjoy a day of fun and great exercise on Washington's beautiful Pacific beaches. Sign up today!

Wonder what a cleanup is like? Check out our quick slideshow and FAQs. And whether you're into hiking or driving to your beach, there's something for everyone. Beaches along the northern coast feature dense forests and dramatic sea stacks, whereas beaches along the southern coast feature easy car access and vast, open stretches of sand and surf.

The Washington Coast Cleanup is organized by a broad spectrum of nonprofits, community groups, corporations, and public agencies. Organizers include: the Clallam Bay-Sekiu Lions Club, Discover Your Northwest, Grass Roots Garbage Gang, Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, Olympic National Park, and the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.

WHAT IS MARINE DEBRIS & WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT IT?

Marine debris is trash that somehow ends up in the ocean. Recognize this plastic water bottle? It could be the one you threw away several months ago - not at the beach, but at your home! It just blew out of your garbage, landed in a nearby waterway, and floated out to the coast. Now it's degrading and poisoning our coastal wildlife and releasing its toxins into the food chain.

Or maybe a commercial fishing boat lost some gear in one of our notorius winter storms. Now it's floating around out there, damaging our coastal fisheries, and pointlessly killing everything that gets caught.

No matter where you live or what kind of work you do, marine debris is your problem. Learn more and use our resources today.

WHEN CAN WE EXPECT TSUNAMI DEBRIS?

The enormous quantities of marine debris generated by Japan's tsunami disaster of 2011 naturally left many in Washington State wondering when it would start washing up on our shores and whether to be concerned about any unusal hazards. Get the latest updates here.