Project
04.02.02.0012 - Microplastics Beach Clean Up
Link to this project

Overview

Basics

Basics
The ECO-CLEAN Bot is an all-electric, solar + battery powered beach sifting robot that sifts and cleaners beaches without causing harmful degradation to the native flora and fauna. ECO-CLEAN BOT has the ability to clean over 3,000 sq/meters of beach per hour without emitting any fossil fuels. We feel this tool will remarkably change the way local agencies, jurisdictions, resorts and private residences clean their beaches. Removal of harmful macro plastics and debris is critical to preserving our natural wonders. ECO-CLEAN SOLUTIONS is proud to announce the deployment of the BEBOT Beach Cleaner in Lake Tahoe Summer 2022.

Implementation
2021
2022
2026
$1,000,000
Laura Patten (Laura@keeptahoeblue.org)
04/11/2022
02/07/2024
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Location Information Location Notes

Organizations

Organizations
ECO-CLEAN Solutions (ECO) JT Chevallier - (Unknown Organization)
League to Save Lake Tahoe (League) Laura Patten - League to Save Lake Tahoe (League)

EIP Details

EIP Basics

EIP Basics
View EIP Fact Sheet | View Funding Request Sheet
04 - Science, Stewardship, and Accountability
04.02 - Stewardship Program
Utilize Innovative Technology
04.02.02.0012 - Microplastics Beach Clean Up

This project is on the EIP 5-year list.

Performance Measures

Expected Performance Measures

Expected Performance Measures
Facilities Improved or Created [Action Performed: Improved], [Primary Facility Type: Designated Areas], [Primary Purpose of Facility: Recreation] 2 number

Reported Performance Measures

Reported Performance Measures
Facilities Improved or Created
2022 2023 Total Units
Action Performed Primary Facility Type Primary Purpose of Facility
Improved Designated Areas Recreation 10 9 19 number
Total 10 9 19 number

Funding

Expected Funding

Expected Funding
$1,000,000
$615,000
$385,000
($320,000 identified as )
Total
City of South Lake Tahoe General Fund (CSLT) $70,000 $0 $70,000
League to Save Lake Tahoe (League) $470,000 $270,000 $200,000
Nevada State Parks (NV State Parks) $50,000 $0 $50,000
North Tahoe Community Alliance (NTCA) $345,000 $345,000 $0
Grand Total $935,000 $615,000 $320,000

Reported Expenditures

Reported Expenditures
Total 2023 2022 2021
League to Save Lake Tahoe $270,000 $170,000 $100,000 $0
Grand Total $270,000 $170,000 $100,000 $0

Photos

Photos

Other Details

Watersheds

No watersheds set for this project.

Threshold Categories

  • The results of our beach cleaning operation will provide better aesthetics for scenic corridors and beaches.
  • The Big Blue Beachcomber will sift and clean beaches to provide enhanced habitat for flora and fauna on in and out of Lake Tahoe.

Local and Regional Plans

No Local and Regional Plans set for this project.

Related Projects

Related Projects

No Related Projects set for this project.

External Links

Notes

Notes
02/10/2023 2:04 PM Beth Vollmer Previously named Big Blue Beachcomber
12/08/2022 10:28 AM JT Chevallier Tahoe’s beaches represent the last stop for small pieces of litter before they enter the lake’s vibrant blue waters, where they’re all but impossible to remove. The all-electric, remote-controlled, beach-cleaning robot, or BEBOT, was deployed around the Tahoe Basin for the first time in 2022. The Tahoe debut was also the first time the technology has been used on the West Coast.

The robot was brought to the country’s most popular alpine lake through a collaboration between ECO-CLEAN Solutions and the League to Save Lake Tahoe, the 65-year-old nonprofit behind the “Keep Tahoe Blue” environmental movement. In its first summer of action, the BEBOT was tested to see how efficiently and effectively it can remove hard-to-find, hard-to-remove trash, and to determine what role it can play in fighting litter at the lake.

“To most people, Tahoe’s beaches look perfect, but there’s a mess hidden in those first few inches of sand,” said Jesse Patterson, the League to Save Lake Tahoe’s chief strategy officer. “New technology like the beach-cleaning robot, along with science, volunteerism and partnerships, are all needed for a litter-free Lake Tahoe.”

Between June and October, the BEBOT visited 11 beaches around the Tahoe Basin managed by the USDA Forest Service, California State Parks, Nevada State Parks, local governments and private owners. Each visit was permitted and preceded by a site survey for the endangered Tahoe Yellow Cress plant. The effort identified several new populations of the endemic species and ensured sensitive habitat was avoided. At each cleanup site, the robot covered up to a 5,000 square foot area, methodically sifting sand up to four inches deep and gathering small bits of garbage and organic matter in its hopper.

“Shared stewardship of public lands by agencies, private sector business, nonprofits, and most importantly the public is key to protecting the Tahoe environment and experience,” noted Daniel Cressy, public services staff officer for the USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. “Innovative approaches, such as utilization of the BEBOT, help push the boundary of the ways we care for the land and what we imagine is possible.”

To illustrate the robot’s effectiveness, volunteers removed all the litter they could before the BEBOT was deployed at nearly every site. Even after pre-cleaning, the robot gathered a staggering amount of hidden litter – 6,315 pieces in total. That included 2,085 assorted pieces of plastic, 325 cigarette butts and 1,695 bits of organic waste (such as pistachio shells, cherry pits and orange peels) that can take years to biodegrade. These figures show that litter may be out of sight and out of mind, but it certainly isn’t out of the environment.

One site, Nevada Beach, was visited twice this year: on July 5th as part of the League’s annual Keep Tahoe Red, White and Blue beach cleanup, and again on October 4th. The total litter removed on each day – 596 pieces in July and 503 pieces in October – are strikingly similar, showing that litter accumulates very quickly and can easily get buried in the sand where it’s hidden from traditional cleanup efforts.

Among the 11 sites visited, Zephyr Shoals, an unmaintained stretch of beach on the east shore, contained the most trash. That mirrors results from a League cleanup earlier in the summer, where a team of volunteers removed 2,700 pounds of litter in a single morning.

The new technology supports, but doesn’t replace, other ways of fighting litter. Next year the BEBOT will work in tandem with Tahoe Blue Crews, one of the League’s volunteer programs where individuals and groups adopt sites for regular cleaning and litter data collection. This year, the BEBOT constituted its own Tahoe Blue Crew.

The BEBOT’s performance in its 2022 pilot season shows it can serve as the last line of defense to keep pollution, including ubiquitous and persistent plastic trash, out of the water. Keeping Tahoe’s beaches litter-free will require an ongoing effort, including sufficient trash cans and dumpsters, maintenance staff, volunteer events, informed and motivated beach-goers, and innovative technology like the BEBOT.

“Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet that is going to remove all the trash from the shores of Lake Tahoe,” said ECO-CLEAN Solutions’ Founder and CEO JB Harris. “But the introduction of the BEBOT is a huge step in the right direction.”

Looking ahead to next summer, the League and ECO-CLEAN Solutions are working with public and private land managers to schedule regular BEBOT cleanups for the spring and fall, expand cleaning areas to cover entire beaches, and use the data collected to devise policy solutions to stop trash before it becomes litter. The partners are also exploring a range of other opportunities, such as targeting invasive Asian clam shells and goose droppings as a nuisance and water quality threat, and introducing other innovative cleaning technologies in 2023.

The BEBOT is manufactured by The Searial Cleaners.