Beach Clean Ups Work!
/Do you take part in beach cleans? We’ve got good news for you, Norwegian research organisation Norce has, for the first time, found evidence that beach clean ups rapidly and dramatically reduce the amount of microplastics in the environment! Their study, conducted on an island near Bergen, found that a year after plastic items were removed from the shoreline, the amount of microplastics on shore and in the water fell by as much as 99.5%.
It’s believed that the high levels of UV light and warm temperatures found in shallow waters leads to the plastic disintegrating much more quickly than previously thought. This study suggests that the regular removal of large pieces of plastic from beaches and waterways before they are exposed to the elements dramatically reduces the amount of microplastics that are generated. The study noted that the rapid breakdown of larger pieces of plastic into microplastics only happens when the larger pieces are exposed to the elements. Plastic that ends up in deep ocean waters will not break down so rapidly due to reduced sunlight exposure and colder temperatures.
Reported in Sky News, Gunhild Bodtker, senior researcher at Norce, said, “I was happily surprised because it means the clean-up has efficiently reduced the leakage of microplastic into the sea. And that is really good news.” As a result of these findings, she encourages everyone to: “Clean up plastic on the shores, clean up all the plastic in the environment. It really makes a difference.”
Fantastic news! Make sure you head over to our Mindful Beach Cleaning Blog for advice on how best to remove litter from our shorelines and not disturb precious ecosystems.