By Mary O’KEEFE

LA Climate Week was from April 8 to April 15 and several events were held across LA County. In Altadena, volunteers were found at Eaton Canyon Natural Area to “carefully remove invasive plants – an important step in the canyon’s recovery,” according to Los Angeles Dept. of Parks and Recreation.

The event at Eaton Canyon was organized by the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement (GO-Serve), LA Climate Week, LA Works and LA Dept. of Parks and Recreation. 

Local resident Darin Miller joined the force of volunteers at Eaton Canyon to pull weeds. 

“They first explained that we were removing invasive species from the park area,” he said. 

Volunteers were separated into six groups and then for about two hours pulled the plants. 

“We were also picking up burned wood,” he said – wood that was left from the 2025 Eaton Fire.

Miller said he wanted to volunteer to help those in Altadena.

“I grew up here [in the Crescenta Valley] and I have friends in Altadena. I know people who lost their homes,” he added.

Among the volunteers were people who had lost their homes in the Eaton Fire. 

Miller added it seemed like a small effort but the work done cleared a lot of the area and, in the end, the volunteers could see the native plants that had survived, or recovered, from the fire. 

Josh Fryday, GO-Serve director and California chief service officer was on hand to help. 

“During LA Climate Week, our California Service Corps members stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Angelenos as we take climate action and support fire recovery. The California Service Corps has become a powerful force for good,”  Fryday said. “Our service members are lifting up their communities while gaining experience, skills, connection and purpose. We continue to call on a new generation of Californians to lead, solve problems and launch careers through service.”

On Saturday morning, CV High School and Cal State University – Channel Islands graduate Jessy Shelton hosted another LA Climate Week event through her non-profit 7 Seas Collective by conducting a coastal health survey.

“We are [conducting] surveys to see what is happening at our beaches. We are collecting data to see the trends in different beaches over time,” she said. 

On Saturday volunteers at Redondo Beach counted birds, critters in the sand (like sand crabs) and “marine wrack” – dried out organic deposits found on the sand like dried kelp, sea grass and other algae. 

The data was collected and stored through Field Scope, a public platform where data is available to the public. 

7 Seas Collective hosts these type of beach surveys in LA and Orange counties. It will soon be collecting data at Ventura County beaches as well. Shelton said the data willnot only help to identify trends at beaches and their ecosystems, this information will be shared with local county leaders. 

“We will use the [results] with the counties to see how we can make changes that will be positive for the beach,” she said. 

One of the issues it is working on is how “beach grooming” can actually damage the beach. Beach grooming is a mechanical process of cleaning and raking sand. Intense grooming often removes vital organic material that is needed for a healthy beach.

Shelton said a bulldozer, often used in beach grooming, will till the sand to pick up algae and wrack but as these heavy vehicles travel over the surface they compact the sand, crushing everything underneath it – including sea life. 

The organization hopes to find alternate ways to groom the beaches that are less invasive. 

On Saturday the volunteers recorded zero life in the sand, which Shelton said was unusual for this are of Redondo Beach. There were also very few birds, another unusual find for the area. Shelton said there had been a recent “avian die off” that affected Redondo. The California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife has been investigating increased reports of debilitated and dead seabirds at California beaches. 

“Of the birds examined, nearly all have been younger birds that are emaciated, sometimes with opportunistic fungal respiratory infection and/or heavy parasitism, or with secondary injuries,” according to California Fish and Wildlife. 

The survey 7 Seas Collective took will continue to record data to help with bird investigations as well. 

“These events are for everyone. The point is to learn about the beach and to change the idea of the beach … It’s not just for recreation but is a dynamic eco-system,” Shelton said. “The survey gets people connected with the beach and will hopefully help them understand it better.” 

The beach survey is for all ages and although participants may not begin as  scientists they end the day as citizen scientists. 

For more information, go to 7seascollective.org.