The Marine Conservation Society (MCS), a UK charity that works to protect the seas, shores and marine wildlife, is calling for volunteers to help clean beaches left strewn with ‘huge amounts of litter’ following harsh winter storms.
In a press release, MCS noted that many beaches have been left in a ‘terrible state’, and said now was a good time to clean them. Lauren Eyles, MCS Beachwatch Officer, commented: “When it comes to beach cleaning, every little helps. We would urge people to visit their local or favourite beach and pick up some of the rubbish that has either been blown there by the strong winds or washed in by the unusually high tides.
“After storms, the strandline is often higher up the beach than normal, and on some beaches that our staff and volunteers have already cleaned, we’ve seen much more litter than is usual at this time of the year. Now is a really good time to become a Beachwatch Organiser and get family and friends together down on the beach. MCS needs all the information it can get about where litter on our beaches comes from and by organising a clean and filling out a survey form you can help our campaigns to stop beach litter.”
According to the charity, litter levels are already at ‘the highest level since records began’, with nearly 2,000 items of rubbish for every kilometre of beach, even without the added debris scattered by storms. Plastic litter, which has increased 140 per cent since 1994, is of particular concern because it does not degrade and can be ingested by marine life. The charity says that severe storms like those experienced in the past two months ‘mean that many unusual items are likely to have been washed up and need clearing away – and some could cause harm to wildlife or human visitors’.
Eyles continued: “Hundreds of species accidentally eat or become entangled in litter. Litter on our beaches is also hazardous to people – syringes, sharp glass can all pose a real threat.”
MCS concluded that cleaning requires only basic equipment such as bin liners and rubber gloves, and the permission of the beach owner – often the local council.
For more information, visit MCS’s website.
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