Beach Cleanup With Sharks and Oceans Academy

The public is invited to join in and help clean Junipero Beach, Long Beach for our first field trip of our Sharks and Oceans Academy.

This educational program reaches ESL -underserved youth and teaches them about the ocean and ocean action. Meet our “sea Star” Kalani, who is leading orange county youth in ocean education.

This beach is near the effluent of the Los Angeles river and plastic and other debris is consistently deposited, especially with heavy rains. Reducing debris will help protect marine ecosystems, and data collected will help understand brands and patterns of consumption and waste.

Following the cleanup, South Junior High Principal and SCUBA Diver Randy Poggio will challenge the youth to an exercise on the costs and benefits of oil rig removal, a current topic of debate off the Southern California coastline. Oil rigs are running dry and after 40 years oil companies are considering the decommissioning and removal. For decades the pilings have become an epicenter supporting marine life including sponges, algae, nudibranches and fish. Some divers and biologists want to see the pilings remain as a source of marine life and enjoyment, others want to see the unsightly platforms and potentially polluting materials removed as required under the Oil and Gas Leases. Youth will model oil rigs in a STEAM event and present both sides of the issue.

April 6

0900-1100

1 Junipero Ave

Long Beach

90803

This is currently a prototype program that can be adopted by other schools and communities, with free materials and exercises. Shark Stewrads is developing this program to make the ocean and ocean learning more accessible to inner city or underserved youth. Other field trips include after school programs, museum and aquarium visits, a visit to Catalina Island and culminating in our Run 4 Sharks and Ocean Health Fair in Newport Beach in October 2024.

Volunteers are welcome and donations help support this program.