Charlie Paradise and his daughter recently attended a beach clean in Swanage and they wrote this inspiring note to us:
My family live miles from the coast, but like most families we love the sea air, the views and playing on the beach.
We also like to help clean up the coast and here are 5 reasons why it’s helpful to families as well as the marine life.
- It teaches children about plastics.
Every child loves toys, unfortunately most of these are made of plastic these days. What’s really beneficial to children is to learn about the damage plastic can do to the environment.
This isn’t to say they shouldn’t have plastic toys. Instead it is more about how they dispose of them. It teaches them that not all plastic is recyclable.
When you find plastic in a beach clean you can talk about how it got there. You can also show them that plastic breaks down into microplastics and why these are dangerous to marine life and also that these are impossible to pick up on the beach and in the sea.
It leads to conversations about buying used toys and fixing things rather than buying new. It encourages children to want second hand toys and it gives great insight into the damage of single use plastics. The less new toys in the world the smaller the risk.
- It teaches children about cigarettes
Our biggest find on the beach was cigarettes. This straight away lead to conversations about why they are dangerous to marine life and people. It educates on the importance of people not smoking on the beach and disposing any cigarettes properly.
- It’s accessible
We opted to do an organised beach clean. The benefits of this are my daughter sees a group of others keen to help the marine life – she isn’t alone on her quest.
It also means you can get the kit you need and dispose of the rubbish at the end properly.
It’s important that people know there are also other options. Some beaches have beach clean initiatives where the kit is there to borrow. Failing this you can of course take litter picks and buckets with you and do one on your own which gives complete flexibility to your family.
- Sets the scene for recycling away from the beach.
A beach clean shows the consequences of poor recycling, poor disposal and nature playing a part (storms and winds blowing rubbish from a path/ road onto the sand). Children can see the actual damage in front of them. This is better than any book or conversation you might have. This can educate children into really understanding the importance of good recycling and good disposal. It can make them understand that even littering 2 miles from a beach might do marine life harm still and if not marine life other wildlife.
- There is nothing better than a seafront walk with your loved ones even on a cold winter’s morning. Therefore there is no downside to doing your bit – it’s actually really fun.
These are just our reasons but we would encourage any families to think about it when visiting the coast.
Thank you, Charlie.
If you’d like to help, please contact us at litterfreepurbeck@gmail.com
