It's wonderful to know how many people take the time to keep our area litter-free.

  • Doug Wilde was the gentleman from Stanford who started riding his bike up 84 for his health and was dismayed by the amount of trash.
  • A wonderful woman has now taken up his mantle on 84 east of Skyline. We've shared stories of our "finds" and how they might have gotten there.
  • A group that takes weekly hikes from San Gregorio to Pescadero on Stage Rd. have been picking up litter along the way.
  • A gentleman from San Carlos began cleaning up here several years ago since he loves the coastside and rides his motorcycle on our roads frequently.
  • A number of loyal volunteers from SGERC (San Gregorio Environmental Resource Center) have been picking up litter and removing pampas/jubata grass along Hwy. 84 west since at least 2007, our first official permit with Caltrans.

We now have permits to clean 8 miles from Highway 1 to Pescadero Creek Rd.

SGERC was recently visited by the state Adopt-A-Highway coordinator to thank us for our many years of litter collection. Our Clean California event and environmental preservation efforts were featured in the Caltrans Director's Update:

Adopt-a-Highway - San Gregorio Environmental Resource Center

SGERC with Caltrans District 4 Director Michael Jevicky, holding trash pickers and trash bags while wearing hard hats and high-vis vestsEarlier this year, our Adopt-a-Highway Program Coordinator, Michael Jevicky, had the opportunity to partner with the San Gregorio environmental Resource Center (SGERC) group on an Adopt-a-Highway event. The SGERC group is dedicated to preserving and protecting habitat for endangered species of the Santa Cruz Mountain bio-region, focusing on the San Gregorio Watershed and the San Mateo County Coast. They promote their efforts through community education, monitoring, research, outreach, habitat preservation, and restoration. On this particular event, the group picked up almost one cubic yard of waste, discarded trash, and cigarette butts that would have potentially made its way to the delicate ecosystem. By taking this action, they contribute to keeping our state's right of way clean but also helping to protect our precious water resources, showcasing their care and concern for the environment.

SGERC has also adopted San Gregorio State Beach through the Adopt-A-Beach program and have a beach cleanup scheduled this Saturday morning, 9-11am. If you'd like to be involved in any of our activities; stream monitoring, Watershed Education Program, or cleanups, please let me know offline. We also plan to have an info booth at La Honda Fair in June and you could visit us there.

Many thanks to Larry, Tom, and the many others who take a part in protecting our environment.

-- Neil