Riding the Wave of Change: Surfrider San Diego's Impact in 2024

In 2024, Surfrider San Diego proved that collective action and community engagement can create meaningful change for our ocean, waves, and beaches. From mobilizing volunteers to protect our coastline to forging impactful partnerships, our chapter has not only tackled pressing environmental challenges but also inspired hope for a cleaner, healthier future. As we reflect on this year’s accomplishments, we are reminded that every individual effort contributes to a larger wave of positive transformation. Together, we will continue to defend the places we love and ensure they remain vibrant and thriving for generations to come. Thank you for standing with us—let’s keep the momentum going in 2025!

 

We see the most engagement and attendance through our regular monthly beach cleanups. Year-to-date, our chapter has hosted over 180 beach cleanups in 2024, empowering 9,700 volunteers to remove over 11,800 lbs of trash from San Diego County beaches. Volunteers have removed and cataloged 364,077 items of debris from our shores. Totals include over 97,000 plastic fragments, 65,000 cigarette butts, and 47,353 foam fragments.

 

With over a full year in action, our Tamarack-South Ponto monthly public beach cleanup, has officially joined our Chapter’s roster of public cleanups. Led by our Site Captain, Eric Leach, it has been an amazing success – with over 850 volunteers engaged and 660 pounds of trash removed in 2024.

 

In addition to this new site, we were also able to expand our Pacific Beach cleanups, which were previously only taking place during summer months. During 2024 our PB cleanups were hosted every other month plus all summer months! This is thanks to the amazing work of our PB Site Team, Abbey Dahlin, David Present, Megan Pappa, and Simone Fraid. 

 

Photo: Anh Truong

 

On Friday, July 5th – The Dirtiest Beach Day of the Year – 688 volunteers gathered at nine popular beaches to assist with our Chapter’s annual post-Fourth of July “Morning After Mess” beach cleanup series. In only three hours, volunteers recovered more than 3,906 pounds of trash ⁠( primarily single-use plastics) which otherwise would have been washed into the sea, adding to the already critical pollution problem devastating the world’s oceans.

 

Photo: Sunshine Johnson 

In celebration of inclusivity and diversity along our coasts, Surfrider San Diego and Volunteer with Cheli partnered with Gay For Good San Diego, San Diego Pride, Kiwanis Hillcrest All-Inclusive, TurnOUT, and the San Diego LGBT Community Center for a special Ocean Beach cleanup on October 5th in honor of National Coming Out Day (October 11). Over 200 volunteers joined to remove 235 pounds of debris while celebrating empowerment, visibility, and belonging for LGBTQIA+ individuals. This event showcased the power of community to protect our coastlines and foster inclusivity, and Surfrider San Diego looks forward to continuing this collaboration in 2025 and beyond.

 

Our Beach Preservation (Beach Pres) committee advocates for beach protection by monitoring threats to access and coastline health while holding coastal cities and the California Coastal Commission accountable. In 2024, we submitted 22 comment letters, detailed in our advocacy log, with several addressing critical projects that could set harmful precedents or impact ongoing preservation efforts:

 

• January 10th: Opposition to seawalls unless private staircase becomes public access at 825 S Sierra Ave, Solana Beach City Council
• May 21st: Opposition to time extension and continued public access closure at Las Brisas, Solana Beach City Council
• July 19th: Draft Environmental Impact Scoping Comments in support of realignment of the LOSSAN rail corridor off of Del Mar's eroding bluffs, SANDAG
• September 6th: Concerns that proposals for "neighborhood-scale adaptation" are code for "neighborhood-style seawalls, " Coastal Commission
• November 19th: General support - plus ongoing concerns - with RE:BEACH recommended site, Oceanside City Council
• December: 11th Support for an appeal of improperly sited beachfront development near Stonesteps (Encinitas), Coastal Commission

 

We supported the City of Encinitas’ Beacons Beach Parking Lot Relocation project at both the local level and the Coastal Commission, where it was appealed by adjacent property owners. Moving it will reduce pressure on the existing beach access, which sits atop an active landslide, and serve as a precursor to the future installation of additional beach access. Our chapter has opposed calls to armor Beacon’s Beach for over 20+ years because doing so would ultimately ruin the beach we love. 

 

We contributed to the fight against the North County Transit District's (NCTD) federal petition to bypass state environmental review (e.g., the CA Coastal Act) for railroad repairs along Del Mar’s eroding bluffs. The federal government rejected NCTD’s petition in 2023, and in October 2024, NCTD filed a motion to dismiss the petition rather than appeal the decision.

 

Photo: Jim R

 

Beach Pres volunteers led successful activations around the annual King Tides that included crowdsourcing footage at beaches across the County. Our team leveraged the extreme high and low tides to lead 8 educational beach walks at significant beach sites from La Jolla to Carlsbad. Our King Tide blog and social media posts are among the most viewed of the year. 

• King Tides 2024: Don't Miss the Most Dynamic Beach Day of the Year
• Field Report: Extreme Low Tide Beach Walk in La Jolla
• Field Report: Carlsbad "Save the Beach" Walk at Dip in the Road
• King Tides 2024: The Future of our Coast, Today

Surfrider San Diego’s volunteer water quality monitoring program plays a vital role in protecting public health at our local beaches. Through this initiative, we track pollution impacting San Diego County’s coastal waters and engage the community to find solutions.

 

This year, we collected 217 water samples across San Diego County to test for Enterococci (fecal indicator bacteria). Our results highlight areas of concern, including Imperial Beach, Silver Strand State Beach, Ocean Beach Dog Beach, Campland, Tourmaline Surf Park, and Ponto Beach.    

 

The table shows the average and median Enterococcus MPN/100mL values for each site in 2024 (green values are ‘Low’, yellow values are ‘Medium’, and red values are ‘High; Based on water quality standards set by California State Water Resources Control Board’).

 

In 2024, the Blue Water Task Force (BWTF) began sampling an additional four beaches, increasing our total roster to 17 beaches in San Diego County. We added Tamarack Surf Beach (last sampled in 2004), South Ponto Beach (last sampled in 2006), Hotel del Coronado (last sampled in 2020), and Silver Strand State Beach (last sampled in 2020). Additionally, we significantly increased our sampling efforts in Imperial Beach—the region with the most fecal bacteria in San Diego County—sampling about four times more frequently than in previous years since 2019.

 

We continued to foster community engagement through various partnerships and media outreach. Axel Herrera-Ibarra and Rachel Weinstein spoke with Spectrum News 1 about the ongoing sewage crisis in Imperial Beach and how the BWTF monitors fecal bacteria in the region, providing weekly updates to the public. Additionally, we partnered with two students from CSU San Marcos, offering hands-on experience with our data. These students utilized 23 years of BWTF data to explore water quality trends at Imperial Beach for their Senior Capstone project. We also collaborated with students from High Tech High-Mesa on a Climate Resiliency Project with The Center for the Study of the Force Majeure, further amplifying community efforts toward addressing coastal issues.

 

Our Clean Border Water Now (CBWN) program addresses the toxic industrial waste, untreated sewage, and trash that devastate 20 miles of international coastline, impacting communities and ecosystems in south San Diego County and Tijuana. By collaborating with affected community members, partners, and coalitions, we raise awareness through outreach and education while driving policy changes at all levels of government through advocacy. In 2024, these efforts made a significant impact; while the public health and environmental justice crisis in the Tijuana River Watershed continues to worsen, we are encouraged by the growing momentum of the social movement demanding change. 

 

Photo: Un Mar de Colores

 

On April 16, the Tijuana River was named one of the top ten most endangered rivers in the U.S. by American Rivers, highlighting its importance, the threats it faces, and the opportunity for community action. CBWN and Un Mar de Colores nominated the river and announced the designation at a press conference in Imperial Beach. Read our blog to learn more.

 

Photo: Veriditas Rising

On October 13, more than 265 people gathered at Pier Plaza in Imperial Beach for Unite to Heal Our Coast, raising a united voice for solutions to the transboundary pollution crisis that has devastated South Bay communities and ecosystems for decades, creating one of the nation’s most severe public health and environmental justice emergencies. This free event brought together residents, advocates, scientists, elected officials, community organizations, a labor union, and a school district to address the pollution impacting South San Diego County, Tijuana, and beyond. Attendees participated in advocacy and art activities, enjoying live music and dance from local high school groups. Read our blog for more on the event and updates on this ongoing crisis.

 

All year, we’ve been collecting signatures on a petition urging the President and Congress to end the public health and environmental justice emergency in the Tijuana River Watershed.  

 

The week of December 16th, we traveled to Washington, D.C., with a delegation of San Diego leaders and advocates to hand-deliver the petition, which garnered 7,450 signatures from across the U.S., to White House staff. Thank you to everyone who signed! We are honored to represent and amplify your voices to our national leaders. Together, we’ve made a compelling case, and we’re confident our leaders will take action to address this ongoing crisis.

 

The Climate Change Committee made significant strides this year by strengthening partnerships with local environmental nonprofits and alliances to engage volunteers in climate policy and community science initiatives.  

 

Volunteers advanced a Climate Action Plan database for San Diego County, collaborating with Scripps Institution of Oceanography to use machine learning for future data capture and analysis. This work supports informed comments to government entities, with several plan updates addressed this year.  

 

We advocated for the S. Carlsbad Blvd. realignment project, participated in ReWild Mission Bay’s wetlands restoration efforts, and engaged with San Diego Botanic Garden to plan an Ocean Friendly Gardens project. In January 2025, we’ll co-host a restoration event at Cottonwood Creek, coinciding with the Moonlight Beach cleanup, with plans for ongoing collaboration.  

 

Additionally, we remain active in the San Diego Green New Deal Alliance, San Diego Building Electrification Coalition, and other initiatives, signing petitions, attending meetings, and contributing to city planning efforts.  

 

Finally, we are developing video content to highlight climate change impacts in San Diego and explore volunteer opportunities in community science.

 

Ocean Friendly Restaurants (OFR) hosted 5 OFR Blitzes in 2024, covering Chula Vista, La Mesa, Oceanside, Liberty Station, and Vista. An OFR Blitz pairs seasoned volunteers with new ones to engage restaurants about the OFR program, compliance with local Plastic Reduction Ordinances, and state laws.

 

We hit the milestone of 100 OFRs this year, marking a strong comeback from the post-COVID hiatus. The San Diego OFR program was honored as a Coastal Champion at the 40th Anniversary and Super Summit event in Long Beach. Thank you to everyone who contributed—congratulations on reaching 100 OFRs!

 

Mitch’s Seafood became one of our National OFR case studies—check out this blog to see the significant impact they’ve made, saving both money and plastic by switching to reusable practices! 

 

NEW PROGRAM ALERT!  The Ocean Friendly Hotels (OFH) program is an expansion of Surfrider’s nationally-recognized Ocean Friendly Restaurants program. Ocean Friendly Hotels program showcases even more businesses that are turning the tide on plastic pollution

 

The first two OFH’s in San Diego County are The Pearl (Point Loma) and Twelve Senses Retreat (Encinitas). Spectrum News did an interview with OFR Program Co-Lead, Vicki Conlon, and The Pearl’s Operations Manager. Check it out here!

The OFH program is being led by volunteer Xyra Aranda. In addition to adding new hotels in 2025, aiming for 100 OFH locations within 5 years, it would be beneficial to include hotels with more accessible price points. This would help spread the values of sustainability and environmental awareness to a broader range of people.

 

Additionally, exploring ways for OFH guests to learn more about Surfrider’s programs and receive tips on incorporating small, impactful changes into their daily lives could enhance awareness. For example, QR codes near water refill stations or at the front desk could provide guests with easy access to information and resources.

 

In 2024, Surfrider San Diego’s Rise Above Plastics (RAP) program made significant strides in advancing local plastic reduction ordinances.

 

Ordinances in Development
The RAP committee is supporting or leading efforts on five ordinances currently in progress: Chula Vista, Coronado, Encinitas, and La Mesa. Read more here about the stages of each ordinance here! 

 

• Carlsbad: Single-use plastic carryout bags were phased out in July 2024.
• Del Mar: A ban on lighter-than-air balloons became effective in January 2024.
• Oceanside: Polystyrene foam products were banned as of July 2024, with additional bag restrictions effective January 2025.
• San Marcos: A foam food serviceware ban took effect on January 1, 2024.

• Vista: Compliance has improved through reporting tools and community education, with expanded ordinance discussions underway.
• Oceanside: The City Council is reviewing progress on its Marine Debris Reduction Ordinance.

Outreach Initiatives
Youth and community involvement took center stage in 2024 with student-led efforts in Poway and planned advocacy initiatives in Imperial Beach and National City.

Through policy development, enforcement support, and community engagement, RAP continues to champion systemic solutions to plastic pollution.