Coastal Cleanup Day at Upper Newport Bay – Sept. 23
By Christopher Trela – September 1, 2023
Source: Newport Beach Independent https://www.newportbeachindy.com/coastal-cleanup-day-at-upper-newport-bay-saturday-sept-23/
The Newport Bay Conservancy is hosting Coastal Cleanup Day at Upper Newport Bay on Saturday, Sept. 23 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Volunteers will meet at a dozen different mini-cleanup day sites around the 11-mile bay including the Peter and Mary Muth Interpretive Center, Newport Aquatic Center, Big Canyon, Vista Point, Jamboree Bridge, etc. Exact meeting location will be announced and sent to everyone (group leaders) prior to Sept. 21.
Each September, families, friends, co-workers, scouts and school groups come from all over Orange County to volunteer their time at Upper Newport Bay. With more rain this year bringing more trash into the Bay from our surrounding watershed, we are gearing up for a much-needed deep cleaning of the Bay.
The goal is to remove over 10,000 pounds of trash including a new wave of waste from the increased use of single use plastics, disposable masks, and gloves since the start of the pandemic. These items and others risk harming wildlife, pollute our waterways, and threaten public health and your support is crucial to our mission.
Around 1,000 volunteers are needed to help remove trash from the uplands and marsh areas of the Bay and participate in invasive plant removal. Groups are welcome to participate. There will be bus/shuttles to other areas of the Bay where parking or direct access isn’t available and more accessible options for groups with families.
Everyone should wear old clothes and close-toed shoes because you will get dirty. Feel free to bring your own reusable mask, gloves and trash bag or bucket. It also helps if you have tall/rubber boots or water shoes so you can get into the mud and reach those hard-to-get pieces that may be not as accessible when wearing regular sneakers. Bring a reusable/refillable water bottle so we can reduce our plastic use.
Everyone is welcome to lend a hand, although minors need guardian permission and adult volunteers present (ages six and up may participate). Although we love dogs, please leave your furry friends home. Commemorative t-shirts will be given away to everyone helping out that morning.
For mor information and to register, visit https://www.ocparks.com/events/coastal-cleanup-day-bay.
By Christopher Trela – September 01, 2023
Source: Newport Beach Independent https://www.newportbeachindy.com/coastal-cleanup-day-at-upper-newport-bay-saturday-sept-23/
Longtime Newport Beach resident Devon Kelly has joined the Newport Harbor Foundation board of directors.
“Devon brings a wealth of harbor history and knowledge to the Foundation’s mission. She has spent her entire life sailing on the bay and volunteering in the community. Her boundless energy is welcome as we push towards taking our harbor to the next level for all to enjoy,” said Newport Harbor Foundation Chairman Dennis Durgan.
“I’ve sailed throughout the United States and Mediterranean and believe Newport Harbor is a treasure that needs to be maintained and managed properly for future generations,” said Kelly. “I look forward to working with the Foundation to develop programs to improve water quality and enhance the harbor’s ecosystem for recreation, boating, and commerce.”
Kelly was born and raised in Newport Beach and grew up sailing and cruising to Catalina. She attended Newport Harbor High School and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. She and her husband Gregg have two children who live locally. Kelly taught school at Carden Hall Elementary in Newport Beach, and coached field hockey at Newport Harbor High School. She has served on the Newport Harbor High School Educational Foundation and also was a Board member on the Lido Isle Community Association.
The Newport Harbor foundation was incorporated in 2019 as a 501C3 non-profit educational corporation dedicated to the preservation and improvement of Newport Harbor. At a recent kick-off luncheon, NHF raised $550,000 toward their goal of $2.5 million to purchase police boats and fire boats for the harbor.
Photograph by D Ramey Logan, CC BY-SA 3.0It’s been more than five decades since Newport Beach City Councilman Marshall “Duffy” Duffield started his Duffy Electric Boat company.
Duffield built his first boat when he was 16 years old. His company has sold tens of thousands of boats and become synonymous with Newport Beach, where Duffy rides on the harbor are the norm.
“I’ve had to endure decades of laughter,” he told a crowd — also laughing — on Thursday at the Balboa Bay Resort. “To be known as a builder of the world’s slowest boat is something that I really didn’t think I wanted on this planet. I wanted to be a famous sailboat designer and racer dude, and I sort of kind of am, but not really.”
Still, Duffield now hopes the Newport Harbor Foundation can also similarly be built from the ground up.
The foundation, launched in 2019 before being curtailed due to the coronavirus pandemic, held a kickoff champagne brunch Thursday.
It announced that it had raised more than $275,000 at the event, which also served as a celebration of 50 years of Duffy boats. That number was doubled to $550,000, as foundation chairman Dennis Durgan said there was an anonymous matching gift.
The Newport Harbor Foundation’s stated goal is to take back local control of Newport Harbor, which is now patrolled by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, and start a Newport Harbor Public Safety Department.
Durgan, himself a former harbormaster, said the foundation wants to initially raise $2.5 million for the purchase of a fire boat and four police patrol boats.
Last week 175 residents, political leaders, and Newport Harbor supporters donated over $550,000 to kick off the Newport Harbor Foundation. The Foundation’s goal is to return local control of our harbor to the city.
We celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Duffy Electric Boat. Duffy’s passion for the harbor spans decades.
With 25 miles of frontage, almost 10,000 boats of all shapes and sizes, kayaks, paddle boards, sailing clubs, and charter boats the harbor resembles the 405 Freeway on a busy weekend.
An estimated seven million visitors per year use Newport Harbor’s complex ecosystem that generates an estimated $1 billion per year of economic activity.
Our harbor is essentially a city within the city.
We believe our harbor asset needs to be properly managed by the city.
Our mission is to “Take Back Our Harbor.” It begins with Newport Beach creating our own Harbor Public Safety Department operated by our city, not the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
The Foundation will raise over $2.5 million to purchase and donate a fire boat and police boats to the city for a Harbor Public Safety Department.
This plan does not displace the Sheriffs Harbor Patrol They will continue to use their Homeland Security grant to police the coastline for drug runners and illegal immigrants. They will be available for large-scale emergencies in the harbor through existing mutual aid agreements.
Our Harbor Public Safety Department will use the city’s existing police, fire and lifeguards to make the harbor safe for residents and tourists. We believe local control of the harbor is best achieved by Newport Beach running the show.
If you agree, sign up for regular updates at www.newportharborfoundation.org.
Dennis Durgan / Chairman, Newport Harbor Foundation, Past Newport Beach Harbor Master
This first appeared at NewportBeachIndy.com
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