San Onofre Foundation, Coastkeeper Host Kids

Orange County Coastkeeper, in partnership with the San Onofre Foundation, will educate over 100 students from Carl Hankey K-8 School (Mission Viejo) on a watershed education field trip.

The beginning of Coastkeeper's educational project in South Orange County, the kids will hike the trail from San Mateo Campground to Trestles. They'll learn about geology and the watershed issues and conduct a small beach cleanup.

According to a release from Coastkeeper, the organizationis stepping in to pick up the tab for schools struggling with funding cuts. San Diego Gas & Electric has funded the effort with grant money.

The organization will pay for the transportation costs and substitute teachers, if needed. Shorecliffs Middle School in San Clemente will participate in the same field trip, with 300 students, over the course of two days on June 14 and 15.

Coastkeeper has also created W.H.A.L.E.S.: Watershed Heroes- Actions Linking Education to Stewardship, which introduces students to watershed and ecological concepts through in-class exercises and field trips to local ecological preserves and water utilities.

"In six years of the WHALES program, we have reached out to over six-thousand junior high and high school students across Orange County and the Inland Empire," the release states.