• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, April 2, 2010

The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Southern California has joined with Stater Bros. Supermarkets and California State Parks in a campaign to raise funds for beach clean-up, dune restoration, recycling and maintenance work along the California coastline. 

The state lacks the funds to address such projects without help from the private sector. The "Care for Our Coast" campaign/initiative will also provide funds for educational training for seasonal lifeguards.

As one component of the campaign, which will benefit Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange County beaches (among the most-visited in the country), the regional Coca-Coca bottling unit will donate $1 toward clean-up efforts each time someone buys $10 worth of Coca-Cola products, including branded soft drinks, Vitaminwater, Fuze drinks and Dasani water.

The main effort asks for $1 or $5 tax-deductible donations for the beaches initiative at checkouts while shopping at Stater Bros., or via careforourcoast.com.

That site, as well as a Facebook cause page (facebook/careforourcoast.com), provides educational facts about the program and offers the option to share the cause with friends, engage with fellow social media users and make an online donation.

This is the second year that Coca-Cola and Stater Bros. have initiated an environmental stewardship program to benefit California state parks. Last year's "Reforest California" campaign raised $600,000, enabling the planting of 1 million trees in wildfire-scarred areas in Southern California state parks.

"As the local Coca-Cola bottler, we strive to make a positive difference in the communities in which we do business," says Terence Fitch, VP, general manager for the regional Coke bottler, in a release. "Sustainability programs like those at California state beaches make our communities better places to live."

The customer donation portion of the "Care for our Coast" campaign in Stater Bros. runs through April 25. The Coca-Cola donation portion runs through May 11.