The California coastline is nothing to be taken lightly. Spanning 1,110 miles and housing an array of aquatic life--cormorans, pelicans, sea otters, jellyfish, sea lions, gray and blue whales, seals, great whites sharks, just to name a few--it's one of the state's proudest attributes. Eighty percent of California's residents live within an hour's drive. It's highway, the scenic State Route One, is one of the most traveled roads in the country. Yes, people just can't seem to get enough of the California coast.

On Sept. 17, the California Coastal Commission and Sunset magazine combine forces to honor nine activists who put their heart and soul into preserving this coastine for future generations in honor of the upcoming California Coastal Cleanup Day.

Awards will be distributed in the Coastal Heroes Awards ceremony at San Francisco's Aquarium of the Bay to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Cleanup Day, which is officially celebrated on Sept. 19. The nine honorees are celebrity actor-and-journalist duo Pierce and Keely Brosnan; Serge Dedina, founder of Wildcoast; UC Santa Cruz Institue of Marine Sciences director, Gary Griggs; John Hanke, vice president of Google Maps & Earth; actress and activist, Julia Louis-Dreyfus; California State Senator, Alan Lowenthal; aquarium director Julie Packard; and California Coastkeeper Alliance director, Linda Sheehan.