The Texas General Land Office says volunteers removed nearly 62,000 pounds of trash from the state’s beaches during this year’s Adopt-A-Beach Coastwide Fall Cleanup, according to a news release from Commissioner Dawn Buckingham’s office.
The results highlight the scale of a long-running volunteer program that GLO officials describe as central to keeping Texas beaches usable and its coastal habitats intact.
The Sept. 19 cleanup drew 6,106 volunteers across the coast, the release said. “The Texas Coast was my home for over a decade and as Land Commissioner I am dedicated to ensuring our beautiful beaches are preserved for future generations,” Buckingham said in the release. “The GLO’s Adopt-a-Beach program serves as the backbone of our cleanup, conservation, and beach safety efforts. I am thrilled the volunteers across the coast showed up in droves to support this important cause – picking up nearly 62,000 pounds of trash.”
Buckingham thanked this year’s cleanup sponsors, which the release listed as Chevron, SLB, Valero, ExxonMobil, ONEOK, Garner, the Texas Coastal Management Program, NOAA, Ocean Conservancy and SESCO Cement.
The Adopt-A-Beach program began in the fall of 1986, when 2,800 volunteers picked up 124 tons of trash, according to the release. Since then, more than 600,000 volunteers have collected upwards of 10,000 tons of trash from Texas beaches, the GLO said.
The agency has already scheduled its next rounds of cleanups: Feb. 5, 2027, on South Padre Island; Feb. 6, 2027, at the Coastal Bend; and coastwide events on April 17 and Sept. 18, 2027, according to the release. The GLO encouraged residents interested in future cleanups to sign up for its Adopt-A-Beach newsletter.