Heal the Bay's Marine Debris Database is an online record of trash and other debris that has been picked up by schools, companies, and other volunteers as part of Heal the Bay's various Beach Cleanup Programs.

The database contains counts of the various pieces of trash that have been picked over the last 10 years at 19 of the most popular beaches in the Los Angeles area. Trash is categorized into 31 different "measures" (such as Styrofoam food containers, plastic bottle caps and rings, or cigarette butts) and sub-totaled into 7 groups (such as Recylable Items, Styrofoam Items, or Medical and Hygiene Items). All of the data in the database comes from information entered on Heal the Bay's Data Cards by volunteers during beach cleanups. It does not represent all the trash picked up at beaches by Cities, Counties, Life Guards, or other organizations and volunteers.

Use the Analysis and Charting Wizard to analyze the data in the database, creating your own custom charts and tables. If you (or your school or organization) is already a Heal the Bay beach adopter then you can schedule a new cleanup or Login to enter the tallies from completed beach cleanup data cards. If you aren't already a beach adopter but would like to adopt a beach, schedule a beach cleanup, or just participate in Heal the Bay's monthly "Nothin' But Sand" cleanups, check out our Cleanups Overview Page.