Wealthy locals in stunning Californian city wage war on unruly tourists who are turning iconic beach into eyesore with 'Costco chicken, cigarette butts, Smirnoff Ice and sex toys'
Controversy is brewing in ritzy Laguna Beach as wealthy locals go to war with trash-dumping tourists.
Just this week, the small coastal city south of Los Angeles launched an online campaign warning that littering is now a ticket-able offense.
Leading the charge are locals like Greg Viviani, who has taken to recording his cleaning exploits and posting them alongside passionate messages on social media.
Others have branded the trash 'destructive tourism' and are pushing city officials to do more to stop it, LA Times reported.
Residents are also increasingly irritated by clouds of cigarette smoke, illegal alcohol consumption and 'loud' vehicle exhausts - and have even taken out ads warning visitors to be more considerate.
Controversy is brewing in Laguna Beach over trash being left behind by beachgoers. The city's seven miles of coastline - which consists of 27 public beaches and coves - is seen here
Leading the charge against litterers are locals like Greg Viviani, who has now taken to recording his cleaning for all to see
'It never ends,' Viviani, a surfer and 'videographer', told the LA Times of the trash.
'You can clean it all up in one day and it'll be covered with trash tomorrow.'
Showing a reporter around some of the seven miles of coastline, the 40-year-old local was seen snapping up a tiny yellow straw with his trusty trash picker.
'Look at this,' the tattooed local proclaimed. 'The beach is for everybody,' he said, as luxury homes loomed in the background.
'But we want people to respect the community and help out,' he continued.
'If you see trash, don't walk by. Pick it up and throw it away.
'We can all make it more beautiful so it'll last for generations to come.'
The Times was just the latest stop in the lifetime Laguna Beach resident's media tour, as public records suggest he resides at a residence under the name of his father on sought-after Coast Highway, which overlooks the ocean.
'It never ends,' the 40-year-old Laguna Beach told the LA Times Tuesday of the trash. 'You can clean it all up in one day and it'll be covered with trash tomorrow.'
'The beach is for everybody,' he said, as luxury homes loomed in the background. 'But we want people to respect the community and help out,' he continued
Just last week, he spoke to Spectrum News, saying he's never seen such large amounts of litter.
'It's become such a trash pit,' he said. 'I have never seen the trash this bad in my entire life.'
He went on to share footage of two plastic bags filled with trash he said he compiled during another day's clean-up - which he claimed he does every day.
A few weeks earlier, Viviani took to Instagram to express his disdain in a post shared by SoCal surfing site The Inertia.
'You guys, welcome to summer,' he said. 'It's Monday. July 1, 2024 - I just walked the beach and all of this was taken off of the sand.'
He proceeds to dump a small garbage bag filled with refuse, much of which appeared to be forgotten beach toys.
'I just picked all of that trash up off of the beach, with no help,' he continued.
The lifelong resident who has lived along the beach for all his life said he's never seen levels of trash so pronounced
He went on to share footage of two plastic bags filled with trash he said he compiled during another day's clean-up, adding that he now does the same thing every day
'Nobody helped - and I'm going to do it not for money, not for any type of funding, but because I care about the environment and the ocean. And this has to stop,' he said
'Nobody helped - and I'm going to do it not for money, not for any type of funding, but because I care about the environment and the ocean. And this has to stop.
'It is killing our town, it is killing our way of life... and completely destroyed our town.
'I'm beyond f**king p***ed off,' he finished by saying. 'You should be too, and we need to do better for our planet. Thank you.'
While speaking to the Times weeks later, Viviani recalled some of the strange items he has found scattered about so far this summer - including a brand new pair of Crocs and a sex toy hidden in the sand.
He's also uncovered cigarette butts, chip bags, shoe laces, tissues, bottle caps, and empty bottles of beverages like Smirnoff Ice, along with a great deal of plastic, the Times reported.
As he spoke, Viviani reportedly let out a sigh with each piece picked up, taking great pains to do so before bringing them to a trash receptacle nearby.
Seagulls also reportedly fought over a discarded Costco rotisserie chicken, as the Times spoke to another longtime resident fed-up with the increased levels of trash.
'I feel like we're promoting tourism to the point of just over impact,' said Joanne McMahon, who has lived in Laguna Beach since the late 80s and been put off by the recent flood of tourists.
The outcry has been so pronounced that even Mayor Sue Kempf has weighed in - telling Spectrum last week how the city has started an online ad campaign to enforce trash fines
The new campaign will see litterers fined $100 for their first offense, $200 for their second, and $500 for third and subsequent offenses within a 12-month period
'It's a slice of heaven - and it's getting really crappy,' said another resident, before blaming tourists for the increase amounts of garbage. 'Why do we need to continue to promote this for visitors? We can't handle what we've got now'
'It's a slice of heaven - and it's getting really crappy,' she said of the effects of the crowd.
'Why do we need to continue to promote this for visitors? We can't handle what we've got now.'
The outcry has been so pronounced that even Mayor Sue Kempf has weighed in - telling Spectrum last week that the city has started an online ad campaign to enforce trash fines.
The network filmed an officer ticketing someone for a trash-related offense the day of the interview.
'We're just trying to enforce good behavior here,' Kempf said of the fines, which are $100 for the first offense, $200 for a second within a 12-month period, and $500 for third and subsequent offenses within a 12-month period.
'People are welcome to come to the beach, we welcome people here, but we just want to make sure when you come to the beach, you treat it as if you live there,' she continued.
'I know we're all very protective of our community, but we're getting this everywhere,' she reportedly added at a recent council meeting.'
'And I don't think we can necessarily expect it to change because it gets hot inland and people just pour in here. It's a problem.'
While speaking to the Times, Viviani recalled some of the strange items he has found scattered about so far this summer - including a brand new pair of Crocs and a sex toy
He's also uncovered cigarette butts, chip bags, shoe laces, tissues, bottle caps, and empty bottles of beverages like Smirnoff Ice, along with a great deal of plastic
Residents of the ritzy enclave have said that the city's geographic constraints, like fewer roads and particularly narrow beaches, make their problems more pressing that that of other coastal communities in the Golden State
Such problems are not limited to Laguna Beach, however, with other coastal California cities also seeing a surge in visitors each summer.
But residents in the ritzy enclave have said that the city's geographic constraints, with fewer roads and particularly narrow beaches, make their problems more pressing.
The tension hit a boiling point last month when a video of a Laguna Beach woman shouting at a group of beachgoers while attempting to cordon off part of the beach near her property went viral.
'Get f**king moving,' she says to the group, despite the stretch of beach being owned by the state.
'I'm not joking around! It's not harassment on the beach, it's harassment in my whole property. Get out of here! Now!'
'This is not an Instagram moment-place,' she added while sectioning off her part of the beach.
'You're in my property, get moving now. Now you're in my property line. Move it.'
'Ma'am, we're f***ing walking,' one woman can be heard retorting, as the homeowner replied: 'Pretty f***ing slow'.
As footage of the altercation gained traction on TikTok, the California Coastal Commission sent a notice of violation the homeowner - as well as her neighbor - ordering them to remove the ropes.
It further stated how the ropes, in conjunction with unoccupied patio furniture, provided the 'incorrect impression that the entire area surrounding the obstructions is private property without public access.'
The incident quickly spawned outrage, with many seeing it as part of greater attempt from locals living by the beach to keep others from spoiling their picturesque society.
Residents have shot back that they are not attempting to restrict the coast as the woman did in the video, and just want to keep the beach clean.
Their renewed effort to do so is now underway.
