Clean sweep for Northern Ireland beaches

According to the Marine Conservation Society’s (MCS) Beachwatch 2002 report, Northern Ireland has less litter on its beaches than the rest of the United Kingdom – despite a small increase in litter volume.

Beachwatch is an annual UK-wide beach litter survey and clean up organised by the Marine Conservation Society since 1993. The survey showed that Northern Ireland had seven beaches surveyed, a total stretch of 8.1km. The total number of items found was 7,302 giving 901 items/km. The UK average was 1,609 items/km.

Northern Ireland compares very favourably with the rest of the UK having less litter per km stretch of beach than any other region. Unfortunately this amount shows an increase on last year.

Beach visitor litter accounted for 47.1%, fishing items 12%, sewage related debris 6.7%, shipping litter 2.4% and non-sourced items 27.8%.

Commenting on the report, NIO Minister Angela Smith, said: “This is encouraging news. However, there is no room for complacency. While the findings are good news for our beaches, the report does show that the majority of litter found is dropped by the public. This issue must be addressed, as we all have a role to play in protecting the beautiful beaches in Northern Ireland.

“I would therefore encourage people to always take their litter home. I would echo the sentiment to ‘leave nothing but footprints, waste nothing but time, take nothing but photographs’.”

The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) is the UK’s national charity for the protection of the marine environment and its wildlife.

(GMcG)