And a group of Banff Primary School volunteers found something even more surprising when they were clearing the litter from Banff Links last Friday – an Aberdeenshire Council emergency access sign.

They were taking part in an annual clean-up of the beaches at the Links and Palmer Cove, as part of the Marine Conservation Society's (MCS) annual Beachwatch litter survey and clean-up.

A team of 34 volunteers rolled up their sleeves to clean the beach at Banff Bay on Saturday, September 20, removing debris from a 290-metre stretch of the sands.

The following Friday morning, P6 pupils from Banff Primary spent two hours tidying up the Links. They were assisted by members of the school's eco-committee, which includes head teacher Jenny Stone, pupils and teachers, the school janitor and Aberdeenshire ranger, Jodie Rhodes.

Mrs Stone said: "It was a really successful morning. We found a huge range of things.

"The most surprising object was an Aberdeenshire Council emergency access sign, that three pupils discovered."

A beach litter survey that was carried out in conjunction with the Palmer Cove clean-up recorded a total of 1,559 discarded items, ranging from old rope to tin openers.

The most common objects of refuse recorded on the day were pieces of rope, bits of plastic, pieces of polystyrene, plastic caps and lids, plastic drinks bottles and crisp and sweet wrappers. Among the more unusual items found were tree guards, a toothbrush and toothpaste, a tin opener, a tablecloth and even a rolling pin.

Part of the reason for recording the types of rubbish collected was so that the main sources of the litter could be identified.

Banff Primary School pupils (from left) Louise Robertson, Bruce Anderson and Lisa Sloan make a surprising discovery at Banff Links beach. The children were taking part in the Marine Conservation Society's annual Beachwatch clean-up.

The MCS will use the data from this, and the hundreds of other surveys that were carried out over the same weekend, to tackle the sources of beach litter at the national level.

A spokeswoman for Aberdeenshire Council said: "On Palmer Cove beach, the survey showed that the major source of beach litter was public litter, in other words things like food wrappers and drinks bottles.

"Often people who visit a beach do not take their litter with them when they leave, spoiling it for other visitors.

"The Council and beach owners need to ensure that adequate bins are provided and emptied regularly, particularly in the peak summer period.

"But, most importantly, individuals must take responsibility for their own actions, and remember never to leave litter on the beach or drop litter anywhere."

Beachwatch is the flagship event of the MCS Adopt-a-Beach project, with clean-ups taking place on beaches all over the UK.

The results of the nationwide survey will be published in the National Beachwatch report in Spring 2009.

shepherd_e@spp-group.com

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---