Climate17’s Bournemouth beach clean

Charlotte Chadd, Digital Marketing Executive

Plastic pollution is choking our oceans. Every year, around 12 million tonnes of plastics pour into the sea. As many as 51 trillion microscopic pieces of plastic – weighing about the same as 1345 blue whales – litter our seas, causing catastrophic damage to marine life and to our ecosystem. 1 million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals and turtles are killed by plastic pollution annually, and 1 in 3 fish caught for human consumption contain plastic. 

The impact of COVID-19 is exacerbating the problem. The increased demand for single-use plastics and PPE is vastly exceeding the capability of countries to process it properly. As a result, according to a 2021 research report an estimated 8.4 tonnes of plastic waste has been generated from 193 countries since the beginning of the pandemic.

In the face of this growing global problem, it’s easy to feel powerless. But when we take action together, the smallest of changes can make a huge impact. Beach cleans are a fantastic way to take local action in your community – a crucial step towards cleaning our oceans, they also benefit the local economy and data gathered from litter surveys has proven to be valuable evidence when campaigning for change. 

As a purpose-led recruitment organisation, we're committed to actively being part of the solution to the world's most pressing issues. So we decided to do a litter pick of one of our local beaches here on the South Coast of England – Boscombe beach. 

Director David Blake said: “It was great for us as an organisation to be able to get out of the office and start to make a difference to the area that we live in. Our commitment to giving our time and resource to do good in the local community is just beginning and I am hopeful we can take part in more days out and projects as a group in 2022.”

The dull and drizzly November weather didn’t dampen our spirits – after a hot drink at David Blake’s social enterprise, Black Cherry Cafe, we got our litter pickers and bin bags at the ready, cleaning our way along the beach and up through Boscombe Gardens. 

Progressing down the beach we sadly found the usual culprits – wrappers, cigarette ends and plastic lids – but also firework debris and rocket sticks, left from Bonfire Night.

Our beach clean is one of the first community action days we have planned here at Climate17 – as we head into 2022, we’re determined to double our efforts to make a difference not just in our local community, but also in our global one.