On Saturday, we headed down to Bayshore Bluffs Park to Give a Day for the Bay with our local Eco Rotary.
Club members were ready to receive cleanup volunteers with a smile, a delicious spread of brunch items, and a storage shed full of tools for cleaning up the park. How could you resist?
Volunteers were happy to get to work. They consulted with Eco Rotary Club members, gathered the tools they needed and were on their way.
This Saturday, a dozen volunteers put in about 25 collective hours cleaning up the park, or as Eco Rotary Club President Trina Dougherty says, “spiffing up our pride and joy.” Their enthusiasm and commitment to this special place along the edge of the estuary has stayed steady over the past four years, ever since they adopted the park.
The Eco Rotary conducts these cleanups on the second Saturday of every month. Club members and community volunteers alike rake the gravel paths to rid them of leaf debris, incorporate native plants into the garden beds, pick up trash with pincers or gloves, and pull weeds. Their dedication to eco-friendly gardening practices means that no harmful pesticides or fertilizers end up in the bay.
As Rotary Foundation Chair, Ruth Ann Angus says, “Keeping the park clean and lush with native plantings is a labor of love….” She says they’re committed to continuing this work because they “know how important it is to make sure the bay and estuary remain in good shape. While Morro Bay’s people and businesses are the heart of the town, the estuary is its soul.”
The Eco Rotary Club of Morro Bay is a rare breed. It’s the third of its kind, and one of only four ecologically focused Rotary clubs in the world (there are 34,000 clubs internationally). They have earned national recognition for their efforts to educate citizens about sustainable practices and for putting those practices into action.
They recently held an educational forum that demystified the local recycling process, explaining exactly which materials were recyclable at the curb, and which would have to be put in the trash or reused. The Eco Rotary Club also helps the next generation of eco-stewards. This year, they worked to plan and build a new campfire amphitheater at Camp KEEP, an environmentally focused camp that brings kids to the coast and teaches them about sensitive coastal and marine habitats.
We thank Eco Rotary for partnering with us on this Give a Day for the Bay campaign, and for all that they do to keep the estuary clean and healthy.