Eleven tons of litter
THOUSANDS of volunteers have picked up almost 11 tons of litter from Britain’s beaches in just one weekend, it can be revealed today.
The haul included 16,000 drink containers collected during the annual Great British Beach Clean.
The Daily Express took part in the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) event in September supported by 10,800 volunteers.
In total, 436 beach clean-ups removed 10,833kg (23,882lb) of litter in the charity’s 26th event which saw helpers from Land’s End to the Shetland Islands turn out.
An average of 558 items, including four glass bottles, were found every 100 metres (330ft) highlighting the need to stop littering and for measures to tackle marine pollution at source.
Prolific
Plastic pieces remained the most prolific form of litter, with 143 pieces found per 100m of beach.
Cigarette stubs (42 per 100m) and glass items (33 per 100m) were the next most common types.
Beaches in England had the highest density of litter but there was a four per cent decrease on last year, with 158,511 items from 243 sites.
In Scotland, 67,300 pieces of rubbish were found on 146 beaches, while collectors in Wales picked up 15,185 items from 30 beaches.
MCS is calling for deposit return schemes (DRS) on plastic bottles, glass and cans. The schemes would see a small sum added to the price of drinks redeemed when consumers hand back containers at a designated point.
Laura Foster, MCS Head of Clean Seas, said: “It’s so important to ensure that we’re not taking our foot off the pedal to push the UK government to adopt all-inclusive DRS at the earliest possible opportunity.
“The consultation on a Deposit Return Scheme for England,Wales and Northern Ireland earlier this year received an overwhelmingly positive response from the public, with over 207,000 responses in favour of an all-inclusive DRS.
“Disappointingly, the development for England and Wales has stalled, with the current government indicating it would need to gather further evidence and to consult further before introducing DRS.The General Election has added further delay.”
The Scottish Government has already committed to the scheme by 2021 with a 20p refundable charge.
MPs intend to introduce DRS by 2023. UK consumers get through an estimated 14 billion plastic bottles, nine billion cans and five billion glass bottles a year.
Ms Foster added: “Around the world, 40 countries have DRS in place, significantly reducing litter levels and increasing recycling rates. A climate emergency has been declared and our data illustrates that drinks containers continue to pollute our marine environment whilst policy stalls.
“DRS should be one of the first policies implemented following the upcoming General Election to protect our environment and kick-start behaviour change.”