Robot, volunteers, and science power new push to keep Kings Beach and the Tahoe Basin clean
Sierra Sun | Published by Zoe Meyer | June 20th, 2025
BEBOT performing a full beach cleaning at Kings Beach on Monday, June 16th, 2025. Photo by Katy Jo Caringer
KINGS BEACH, Calif. — A real-life Wall-E is hitting the beaches–A battery and solar-powered robot rolled onto the sand at Kings Beach on Monday, June 16, officially kicking off an expanded effort to tackle shoreline litter at one of Lake Tahoe’s busiest public beaches.
The robot—known as the BEBOT—is the centerpiece of the newly expanded Tahoe Blue Beach Program, a multi-year initiative led by Marilee Movius, Sustainable Recreation Manager at the League to Save Lake Tahoe (Keep Tahoe Blue). Developed in partnership with ECO-CLEAN Solutions, the Desert Research Institute (DRI), and other community organizations, the project is funded through TOT-TBID Dollars at Work grants from the North Tahoe Community Alliance. The program aims to address the region’s growing waste problem by integrating science, education, engineering, and enforcement.
Tahoe Beach Club, Meeks Bay Resort, and Camp Richardson have joined the Tahoe Blue Beaches program this summer, with Zephyr Cove Resort returning for a second year. The program promotes shoreline stewardship and aims to reduce litter.
Aerial shot of a freshly cleaned beach at Kings Beach, CA. Photo by Katy Jo Caringer of ECO-CLEAN Solutions.
At Tahoe Beach Club in Stateline, the first private site in the program, efforts include a volunteer cleanup crew, reusable food and drink ware, and regular cleanings by the BEBOT sand-sifting robot. Meeks Bay Resort, operated by the Washoe Tribe, has added trash bins, restroom service, a CD3 station to prevent invasive species, and will increase staffing and signage ahead of the July 4 weekend.
And Camp Richardson Resort, managed by ExplorUS, is launching a cleanup crew, using the BEBOT, reducing plastic use, and continuing its long-running participation in the July 5 cleanup. New signage is also being installed to encourage responsible beach use.
Roughly the size of a golf cart, the BEBOT filters the top two inches of sand, capturing small but impactful litter—cigarette butts, food wrappers, bottle caps—that is often missed by manual cleanups. Tahoe is the first freshwater site in the U.S. to deploy the robot, which debuted in the region in 2022 and has since operated at 11 locations including Zephyr Cove, Lake Forest, and Moon Dunes.
BEBOT completed a full beach cleaning at Moon Dunes Beach in North Lake Tahoe in May 2025. Photo by Katy Jo Caringer
“It collects debris that is a quarter inch or larger… so it gets a lot of the little stuff,” Movius said.
Kings Beach is the second site to adopt the full Tahoe Blue Beach model, following a 2023 pilot at Zephyr Cove that saw a 97% drop in litter between consecutive July 4 holidays. The Kings Beach launch marks the beginning of a multi-year strategy designed to test whether targeted infrastructure upgrades, public messaging, and volunteer engagement can create long-term behavioral change.
“This is a three-year sponsorship to look at changes over time,” said Tara Hetz, Grant Framework Manager with the North Tahoe Community Alliance, which funds the program through local lodging and retail tax revenue. “We’re not the ‘sexy doing the stuff,’ but we give the money.”
The expansion includes several visible changes: new bear-resistant trash bins, increased restroom and dumpster access, and strategically placed signage. In addition to the BEBOT’s cleaning runs, volunteers and Tahoe Blue Crew members led a community cleanup during Monday’s launch.
“There was definitely quite a bit of visible litter, like full water bottles and a lot of plastic debris,” said Katy Jo Caringer, Director of Marketing at ECO-CLEAN Solutions, who also filmed aerial footage of the cleanup using drones.
Litter collected by the BEBOT is sorted on tarps, with organic materials like pinecones and driftwood returned to the beach for erosion control. Human-generated trash is logged and stored by material type at a South Lake Tahoe airport hangar, contributing to a growing database that informs local policy and public education campaigns. Explore the data on the Trashboard Litter Dashboard and learn more by viewing the BEBOT Story Map.
Caringer noted that each beach has its own “trash personality.” On some private beaches, they’ve found a prevalence of champagne cages, wine corks, and cigars, while on other public beaches, they’ve found an incredible amount of cigarette butts, Zyn nicotine pouches, and discarded beach toys.
That kind of granular data is central to the research being conducted by DRI scientists, including hydrogeology student Sabbathiel Greene, who has spent two years in the institute’s Microplastics and Environmental Chemistry Lab. Greene and his team analyze what types of trash end up on Tahoe’s beaches and how they degrade over time.
Image: A team of research students sorting litter from organic debris collected by BEBOT. Photo by Katy Jo Caringer
Greene’s goal is not only to remove litter, but also to understand its sources and prevent it—particularly before it breaks down into microplastics, which are nearly impossible to extract from the water.
“Once trash breaks down, it’s almost impossible to get out,” Greene said. “So the longer it sits, the more destructive it is.”
Using the BEBOT to collect still-identifiable waste—like wrappers, plastic utensils, or cans—lets researchers trace litter back to potential sources.
“You can find a piece of plastic on the beach and say, ‘okay, I know this is plastic… but where does it come from? Who do I hold accountable?'” Greene said.
Local residents are also stepping up. Kings Beach resident Sean “Chango” O’Brien has hosted weekly cleanups for the past five summers, a tradition that began during the early days of the pandemic. Mondays often bring 15 to 30 volunteers, free donuts and coffee from local businesses, and even kids eager to pitch in.
“It was a really good community-building effort—unintentionally,” O’Brien said. “It was just, you know, there’s a problem. Let’s hit the problem on the head.”
Still, O’Brien sees room for improvement. He pointed to a lack of infrastructure, especially near heavily trafficked areas. “If you look from the event center over to the porta-potties, there is not one single place to put trash or a cigarette butt,” he said.
Image: BEBOT leaves behind a freshly cleaned beack at Camp Richardson Resort in South Lake Tahoe.
He also flagged a policy loophole that contributes to cigarette waste. “California State Parks policy is to not provide cigarette butt receptacles because there’s no smoking allowed… but nobody’s enforcing the no smoking,” he said. “So then there’s just nowhere to dispose of them.”
O’Brien has since co-founded the Tahoe Truckee Trash Alliance to unify cleanup efforts and push for systemic solutions.
“This particular beach is definitely something that should be focused on—forever,” he said.
The League to Save Lake Tahoe agrees. Its Tahoe Blue Beach program includes public outreach before people even arrive, with tips on packing reusable gear, disposing of pet waste, and avoiding food scraps that attract wildlife. Online tools like the Trashboard Litter Dashboard share data and encourage shared accountability.
“The right choice for beachgoers should be the easy choice,” Movius said.
With more than 17 million visits annually—more than four times the number Yosemite sees—Lake Tahoe’s shoreline faces increasing pressure. But through a combination of science, community leadership, and smarter design, those working on the front lines are hopeful that Tahoe’s beaches can be both cleaner and better protected for generations to come.
“Just do what you want to see in this world,” O’Brien said. “Don’t blame people, don’t demonize anybody. Just do what you can. Just teach. Lead.”
Tips for Beachgoers:
Pick up all trash — even if it’s not yours.
Use reusable bottles and utensils.
Keep food scraps out of nature.
Bike, carpool, or take transit.
Bring a “Tahoe beach bag” with a trash sack and pet waste supplies.
Clean, drain, and dry all water gear to prevent invasive species.