Volunteers from across the north and north east are needed to take part in one of the biggest beach cleaning events in the country – and it starts today.
The Marine Conservation Society’s annual Great British Beach Clean is running from September 16 to 25 and there are plenty of local events to get involved in.
From Stonehaven to Orkney, beach cleans and litter surveys are planned across the region and enthusiastic volunteers are needed.
Find your nearest beach clean
The Great British Beach Clean is more than just a litter pick.
Every year volunteers make note of the litter they collect, sharing the data with the Marine Conservation Society’s experts.
The charity has used data collected to campaign for carrier bag charges, single-use plastic bans and, due to start in August 2023, Scotland’s deposit return scheme for bottles and cans.
Last year, volunteers in Scotland collected over two tonnes of litter, with an average of 3.46 items recorded for every metre of beach surveyed across Scotland.
In the north and north-east, you can join beach cleans at:
- Aberdeen (Sept 18)
- Stonehaven (Sept 24)
- Nairn (Sept 24)
- Ardersier (Sept 16)
- Avoch (Sept 18)
- Rosemarkie (Sept 24)
- Cromarty (Sept 19)
- Saltburn (Sept 18)
- Invergordon (Sept 20)
- Burray, Orkney (Sept 16)
For a map of each location and a full list of all Scottish beach cleans, visit the MCS website here.
What might you find out on the beach?
These events aren’t like ordinary beach cleans where volunteers bag up rubbish as fast as they can and move on.
These cleans are more data-driven and there is a focus on keeping records of exactly what kinds of litter are picked up.
For example, 75% of all litter collected across the UK during last year’s Great British Beach Clean was made of plastic or polystyrene.
The beach cleans even get down to the nitty-gritty of individual problematic items, like cotton buds and face masks.
By counting the items, the MCS can measure the impact of policy and cultural changes.
This includes the likes of the plastic bag charge which was introduced in Scotland in 2015 to reduce the number of bags ending up on beaches, rivers and in landfill.
Happily, data from MCS beach cleans shows that this policy has worked and plastic bags continue to become less commonplace on beaches, from a high of 13 per 100m of beach on average in 2013, down to just 3 in 2021.
‘Volunteers help provide vital evidence’
Catherine Gemmell, Scotland conservation officer at the MCS said: “Our volunteers have helped provide vital evidence to ban single-use plastic items like cutlery and cotton bud sticks.
“With 25 wet wipes found on average per 100m of surveyed Scottish beach during the 2021 Great British Beach Clean, our data is also currently being used to call for a ban on single-use plastic wet wipes.
“We need the government to be faster at turning off the single-use tap still pouring into Scottish seas.”
She added that the Scottish Government is currently consulting on a Circular Economy Bill and the data that beach cleaning volunteers collect is vital evidence used to call for swift and ambitious action.
Conversation