Below follow extracts from the latest newsletter from Strandliners. Andy Dinsdale would like to give credit to all participants who have helped clean up the rivers and collect the debris left by unthinking people.
In total 4,375 metal, glass & plastic bottles and cans have been recorded BY YOU!
We wish to send a huge thank you to everyone who took the time and trouble to send in details of the drinking containers found "lost" in our environment. All of the records have been used as part of the response to the deposit return scheme (DRS) consultation. The response is summarized on the Strandliners website here. Thank you to all who responded individually to the consultation, for taking the time to stand up for our environment.
Your records were used by Strandliners, and also in the official response by the Marine Conservation Society, Keep Britain Tidy, Surfers Against Sewage, Greenpeace, RSPB and the Countryside & Wildlife Trust.
Without your helpful input there may not have been any real grassroots evidence of the current situation regarding mismanaged waste. We anticipate that a fully inclusive DRS (Decision Review System) will reduce the amount of "lost" drinking containers by 90% if other European schemes are anything to go by.
If you have not subscribed to the Strandliners news sheet you can click here.
Or join us and become a full member of Strandliners - you can click here.
Lastly, if anyone has any feedback about the ‘Bottles From...’ campaign, whether about the process, - Was it easy? Did you feel a greater sense of "doing something"? Please do say as your thoughts can direct any future campaigns.
If we run another campaign to highlight certain areas of mismanaged waste, what would you like to see? Consider how easy/difficult the recording might be? What are the worst items discovered (in your opinion)?
Send in your thoughts here.
Once again, thank you for your time and effort.
Future events
With the COVID-19 guidelines changing we are beginning to organize events. There may still be changes as we need to continually assess the situation, but here is what is planned so far.
- Dungeness (Jury's Gap, Camber end) - Marine Conservation Society survey. 30 to 45 minute walk on shingle (each way) and a 2/3 hour survey activity. This will involve a clamber over a 4 ft wall and boulders on the way out, but up steps on return! Please email strandlinersevents@gmail.com to book a place.Saturday July 3, 8:30am to 12:30pm
- Camber (walk from Harbourmasters yard) - please email strandlinersevents@gmail.com to book a place.Probably 3 or 4 Sunday evenings, 6pm meet for a 6.30pm start, returning 8.30/9.00pm to car park.
Microplastic surveys at Cuckmere and Holywell, Eastbourne - May 2021
These microplastic and mesoplastic surveys attracted participants from all over East Sussex and were a great success in passing on awareness around primary and secondary micro and meso plastics.
We were part of a larger event on each day with the Marine Conservation Society, Compass Arts and Water Week. And both days were part of the Eastbourne Spring Water Festival. The aim is to focus on knowing what the plastic pollution really is.
