Family Traveler

beachconservation##### Mwntbeachisoneofastringofbeautifulsandystripsalongthesouth-westcoastofWales.It’sashelteredbayoffinegoldensandflankedbysteepcliffsonaremotestretchofcoastlinejustnorthofCardigan.Althoughit’soffthebeatentrack,Mwntispopularwithfamilies;there’sacaféandtoilethalfwaydownthe 100 orsostepsthatleadfromaNationalTrustcarparktothebeach,andthegrassyheadlandabovethebeachisagreatplacefromwhichtospotbottlenosedolphins,sealsandotherporpoises,andeventheoccasionalbaskingshark.ThisSeptember(16- 19 ),MwntwillbeoneofhundredsofbeachesincludedintheGreatBritishBeachClean–acountry-wideweekendoflitter-surveyingandbeach-cleaningorganisedbytheMarineConservationSociety(MCS)withthehelpofthousandsoflocalvolunteers.Thecampaignhasbeensetupbecauseofthemassivebuild-upoflitteronBritain’sbeaches,particularlyplasticwaste,includingbottlesandcarrierbags,nappiescigarettesandcondoms.MCS’sUKbeach-littersurveyshaveshownadoublingoflitteroverthepast 20 years;followinglastyear’sbeachclean,itreportedtherewere2, 500itemsofrubbishforeverykilometreofbeach.TheInternationalUnionforConservationofNature(IUCN)saysthatofalltherubbishthatlitterstheoceans,plasticisthegreatestconcern,asitdoesn’tbiodegradeandisdistributedoverlongdistancesbytideandwind.Muchoftheplasticthatendsupintheoceanscomesfromlandandriversviadrains,sewagesystems,poorlymanagedlandfillsitesandindustrialwaste,aswellasfromrubbishleftonbeaches,shippingspillsanddisused‘ghost’fishingnetsthatliejustbeneaththewater.Theeffectsoflitteronmarinewildlifearenumerous:turtlesandseabirdsmistakefloatingplasticbagsforfood,oftenleadingtodeathfromstarvation;it’sestimatedthatglobally,morethanamillionbirdsdieeachyearafterbecomingentangledinoreatingplasticfoundinourseas.Oneofthegreatestimpactsisfromunseentinyparticlesofplastic(suchasthoseinpersonal-careproducts,orbrokendownfromlargerpiecesofplastic),whichcanreleasetoxicsubstancesintothefoodchain,affectingnotjustmillionsofsmallmarinecreaturesbutalsoeventuallymakingtheirwayallthewayupthefoodchainintothefoodthathumanseat,withhealthconsequencesforallofus.Marinelitterisn’ttheonlythreattothehealthofourbeaches.Climatechangeishavinganimpactoncoastlineerosion,asstormsurgesandrisingsealevelsbattercliffsandsanddunes,whilemarine``````ecosytemsarecomingunderstressascoastlinesareturnedintonewhousing,holidayhomesandtouristdevelopments.MCSisoneofthemostvocalorganisationslobbyingforgovernmentlegislationoncleaningupthemarineenvironment,butitisalsohelpingcommunitiestotakeactionatalocallevel.AswellasMCS’sannualbeachclean,itorganisesnumerousbeachsurveysandcleansthroughouttheyear,andpublishesaGoodBeachGuide(goodbeachguide.co.uk),shiningalightonthosebeaches,suchasMwnt,thathaveexcellentwaterqualityandarepartofMCS’sbeachcleansandlittersurveys.ThankstotheeffortsofMCSandothers,thestateofourbeachesisgainingnationalrecognition.Earlierthisyear,BBCSpringwatchpresentersChrisPackhamandMichaelaStrachanhelpedschoolchildrencollectprintercartridges,fishinglinesandotherlitterfromFreshwaterWest,anotherofthebeachesinsouth-westWalescaredforbytheNationalTrust.TheinitiativeispartoftheBBC’sDoSomethingGreatseason,whichencouragesviewerstovolunteerin65theirlocalcommunities.Eachyear,someoftheworld’slargesttravelcompaniestakepartinTheTravelFoundation’sBigHolidayBeachClean,whichlastyearorganisedmorethan 100 beachcleansinover 20countries.TheTravelFoundationurgesholidaymakerstoavoidcontributingtothe‘plasticsoup’byremovingplasticpackagingbeforeyoutravel(particularlyimportantifvisitingislandnationswhererecyclingorlandfillmightbelimited),takingyourownreuseablewaterbottleinsteadofrelyingondisposableplastic,avoidingbathroomproductsthatcontainmicroplasticparticles(forexample,someexfoliatingscrubs)andwearingenvironmentallyfriendlysunscreenthatdoesn’tincludereef-damagingsubstances,suchasoxybenzone,butylparaben,octinoxateand4-methylbenzylidenecamphor,allofwhichcanbeharmfultocoral,evenatlowlevels.Ifyou’retravellingtothecoastintheUKandIreland,keepaneyeoutforthosebeachesthathavetheGreenCoastAward,whichhavegainedrecognitionfortheirworktopromoteandprotectquietruralbeaches,aswellasthosethathavebeenawardedtheBlueFlag(blueflag.global),whichmeetstringentstandardsincludingwaterquality,facilities,environmentalmanagementandsafety.Therearecurrentlymorethan4, 000BlueFlagbeachesaroundtheworld,including 150 intheUKandIreland.AVOIDCONTRIBUTINGTO‘PLASTICSOUP’BYREMOVINGPACKAGINGBEFOREYOUTRAVELbeachconservationWAVEOFFILTHAsurferridesaplastic-riddledtube``````PHO``````TO``````GRAPH``````BEL``````OW``````:ZAK``````NO``````YLE``````FROM``````THE``````BOOK``````OV``````ERDEVEL``````OP``````MENT``````,OV``````ERPOPULA``````TION,``````OV``````ERSHOO``````T,WWW``````.POPULA``````TIONSPEAK``````OUT``````.ORG