Trash Reduction

The County Watershed Program's (CWP) Municipal Regional Stormwater Permit (MRP) Section C.10 Trash Load Reduction (PDF) mandates the County reduce trash loads to our local waterways by:

  • 80% by 2019
  • 90% by 2023
  • The ultimate goal is zero trash loads to our creeks by 2025!

Some of the ways CWP is working to meet these goals are:People conducting a trash assessment along Grayson Creek

  • Trash Hotspots: CWP has selected eleven sites throughout Contra Costa County that have a high level of trash. Each year, CWP will go to each of these sites and remove and catalogue every piece of trash. This will help us learn what is in our waterways and how best to keep it out. (View a link to Contra Costa County and the Flood Control District's hotspots (PDF) here, view a link to hotspots in other counties and municipalities in the Bay Area here.)
  • Full Trash Capture Devices: With the help of a $115,000 grant from the Association of Bay Area Governments, CWP is working to install full trash capture devices throughout unincorporated Contra Costa County. These devices will prevent trash from reaching our creeks.
  • Grant funding: Through its Community Watershed Stewardship Grant Program, CWP provides funding to local creek groups and other local volunteers for watershed improvement projects, creek restoration, public outreach and trash clean-up events.

Text saying Litter Travels But it Can Stop With You

Do your part to keep litter out of creeks and waterways by following these Best Management Practices (BMPs):

  • Minimize the amount of waste you generate. Remember your three R's: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
  • Properly dispose of your trash so that the wind does not carry it to the stormdrain system where it can be conveyed to local waterways.
  • Help keep your community clean by picking up trash, even if it is not yours. Resource limitations mean government cannot be the whole solution.Trash in stormdrain inlet
  • Keep stormdrains around your property clear of trash, vegetation/leaves, sediment, and other debris. If a drainage inlet in an unincorporated area of Contra Costa County is clogged please call Public Works Department Maintenance at (925) 313-7000 to report it.
  • Participate in local trash cleanups in your community. Municipalities covered by the MRP are required to perform annual trash assessments, where we clean up trash hot spots. We need volunteers to assist in the effort.

Contact one of the creek groups (PDF) that are active in Contra Costa County to participate in a creek clean up. There are always events around Earth Day (April 22nd) and California/International Coastal Cleanup Day (third Saturday of September).