Community Corner

Submitted by Jondra Bjorkman

Derek Yamashita and Alisa Bjorkman help keep trash under control during the Surf City Marathon. A few weeks ago, Alisa, president of the Huntington Beach High School Oceana Club, wanted to see if there was any protection for the drains this year during the Surf City Marathon, and if not, to volunteer to cover the drains. After several calls, she found Jim Merid, the city’s administrative environmental specialist, who provided information, maps of the drains, sandbags and plastic.

Oceana Club sponsors and science teachers Jayson Ruth and David Renfrew joined the student members, including Matt Carter, Kelsey Granger, Beatrice Tsakomakis, Derek Yamashita, Ben Renfrew and Joanna Hubbard.

They covered and sandbagged 12 storm drains in the areas of the heaviest marathon foot traffic. Approximately 18,000 runners were handed seven to 10 drinks a piece, which is between 126,000 and 180,000 plastic cups being thrown into the streets, in addition to wrappers and other trash. The Oceana Club figures that if they prevented 10% to 15% of the cups and trash from going into the storm drains, then they would have stopped 12,600 to 18,000 cups from being drained into the ocean.

— Submitted by Jondra Bjorkman