Inter-island plastic fight
Arran has the opportunity to be one of 10 UK island communities leading the fight against plastic pollution.
Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) has joined forces with Parley for the Oceans and together they will empower local leaders through the Parley AIR (Avoid. Intercept. Redesign.) Strategy.
Arran already has its own campaign group TAP (Think About Plastic) and the Community of Arran Seabed Trust (COAST) carries out marine litter surveys and clean-up work.
Surfers Against Sewage is calling for island communities to submit applications to participate in the pilot project, which will be conducted in 2019.
Each island will need a committed lead communiThe ty volunteer. The community leaders will be equipped with the tools and guidance to support activity within their island community. Leaders will also be invited to team building and training events and have the chance to participate in SAS’s annual volunteer conference.
The project is seeking 10 geographically diverse island communities of varying sizes across the UK, with populations up to 25,000 permanent residents. Interested volunteers can submit their application at www.coldwaterislandsproject. org
Ben Hewitt, director of campaigns and projects at Surfers Against Sewage said: ‘Our island communities are on the front line battling the scourge of plastic pollution and we want to support the groups and individuals working tirelessly to tackle avoidable single-use plastic. This project provides the tools, guidance and strategy to support community-led action to free where we live from avoidable single-use plastic.’
Parley founder Cyrill Gutsch added: ‘Every piece of plastic we pick up from a beach is a victory for life in the oceans. In collaboration with Surfers Against Sewage, we are able to drastically increase the fight against plastics in the UK, expanding to islands that had not yet been in the focus. Now we will boost the efforts of communities working to stem the tide of pollution with the strength of our strategy and global network.’
The programme incorporates the learnings of both SAS’s community initiatives and Parley’s AIR strategy to empower community action against plastic. Each community leader will be supported with a toolkit resource, to guide the island’s strategy and detail the tactics for achieving the objectives.