A local organization received commendation for its ongoing work in Santa Monica and beyond this past weekend. Heal the Bay, a group dedicated to protecting the coastline and restoring waterways in the Santa Monica Bay along with Greater Los Angeles, received a Pongo Environmental Award for Environmental Organization on Oct. 14. The award, given by the Orang Utan Republik Foundation (OURF), highlighted Heal the Bay’s efforts in shifting policy and creating conversation around environmental issues.
Accepting the award from OURF President and Co-Founder Gary Shapiro was Heal the Bay CEO Tracy Quinn, who stated that it was an "honor to be recognized" and that she is "really proud" to be part of an organization that uses science to influence policy and provide education.
Heal the Bay was honored due to its continued work, as well as policy victories of the past decade. In 2016, the organization was the catalyst of a grassroots campaign for Prop 67, which upheld a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags in 2016. Two years later, the group helped secure the passage of Measure W, which set funding aside to capture and reuse billions of gallons of stormwater each year.
The honor comes as the group once again helped influence California’s water use habits. On Oct. 13, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Measure AB-1572 into law, legislation co-sponsored by Heal the Bay, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. The law prohibits public agencies, restaurants, corporate campuses and other property owners from watering "nonfunctional turf" using potable water, beginning in 2027. This does not apply to the watering of residential lawns.
Initially introduced as a temporary measure by the State Water Resources Board in 2022, the formal prohibition was called "the lowest hanging fruit" by bill author Laura Friedman, D-Burbank, and echoes Newsom’s goals of stretching the state’s water supply.
"(Non-functional turf is) not being used for anything, and we can swap it out with drought-resistant plants that are just as beautiful, if not more beautiful, and that don’t require so much water, so many pesticides, so much maintenance and so much mowing," Friedman told The Sacramento Bee.
Heal the Bay also recently collaborated with the public for 2023 Coastal Cleanup Day, which brought together over 7,000 volunteers across Los Angeles County to remove trash and recyclables from local watersheds and neighborhoods. In total, over 16,000 pounds of trash were removed, with over 97 miles of the coast cleaned.
The Pongo Environmental Awards, held at the Building Bridges Art Exchange within the Bergamot Station Arts Center, was the 9th annual event celebrating achievements in environmental work, with a "biodiversity matters" theme throughout the night. Hosted by NBC environmental correspondent Dagmar Midcap and featuring comments from longtime actor Ed Begley Jr., the ceremony featured the award presentations along with a live auction benefiting OURF. Also receiving awards were photographer and Earth Vision Institute founder James Balog, as well as Indonesian conservation group Forum Konservasi Leuser.
