Bay Area environmental organization Save the Bay today released its annual list of 10 spots along the San Francisco Bay shoreline where the highest number of plastic bags have been found.
The Bay Trash Hot Spots are based upon where volunteers collected the most plastic bags on Coastal Cleanup Day in 2008, and include shorelines in Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano, San Mateo, San Francisco, and Santa Clara counties, Save the Bay spokeswoman Amy Alton Ricard said.
Volunteers at last year’s Coastal Cleanup Day picked up nearly 15,000 plastic bags, and Save the Bay officials estimate more than 1 million plastic bags wind up in the San Francisco Bay each year.
In Alameda County, Save the Bay noted the Albany-Berkeley-Emeryville shoreline as one of the trash hot spots, with 7,497 plastic bags–the highest number of all the hot spots–collected along the 14-mile stretch of shoreline. Environmental officials speculated its proximity to Interstate Highway 80 contributes to the excessive amount of trash.
The Antioch shoreline and the Richmond shoreline, from Shimada Friendship Park to Point Isabel, were listed as the two hot spots in Contra Costa County, according to Ricard.
In Solano County, Belden’s Landing in the San Pablo Wetlands was found to have a high number of plastic bags, as well as Mare Island Strait near some railroad tracks in Vallejo, Ricard said.
San Francisco was noted for having two hot spots on Save the Bay’s list: Warm Water Cove near the Potrero Power Plant and Candlestick Park.
Ryder Park and the shoreline from Burlingame Bayfront to Mills Creek in San Mateo County were found to have high amounts of plastic bags, Ricard said.
In Santa Clara County, Coyote Creek which runs through San Jose and Milpitas, was listed as a high trash site.
Save the Bay will hold its 25th annual Coastal Cleanup Day on Sept. 19.
