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Description

Contribute to young peoples understanding of human impact on marine environments by taking part in organised beach clean & litter surveys. This could be in conjunction with a local project like Beachwatch (part of the Marine Conservation Society) or another similar marine conservation charity.

Resources

Confirm what the organiser will provide - some will provide everything you'd need.

Otherwise:
Per person - protective gloves; litter picker
Per group - rubbish bag
Per session - sharps/bio box; scales (for weighing)

Instructions

For an organised event, confirm arrangements, expectations and does/don'ts with the organiser on-site before starting. Ensure your group respect the arrangements made and follow instructions given.

Otherwise:
Identify a section of the beach to clean. Set clear "out of bounds" limits (perhaps along the high tide mark if the sea is rough, etc). Move across the area collecting and bagging any human made rubbish. Natural items (flotsam, mermaid's purses, cuttle fish bones etc) should be left where they are found. At the end of the session, weigh the refuse sacks and see how much rubbish you collected.

In all cases, ensure a suitable safety briefing is given and that the YOUNG PEOPLE have really understood the key elements around safe handling of items they find. Depending on where you are conducting the activity, you may need to consider discarded munitions (washed up shells etc), sanitary items (condoms, towels etc) or hypodermic needles / fishing hooks.

SURVEYS
Some organised events will include surveying what is collected - often within a dedicated area.
Otherwise, you could create your own simple survey (plastics items, card/paper items, metal items, etc) and discuss your findings at a future meeting.
Completing a survey could contribute to a Science Experiment badge requirement.

Tags

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Badge Links

• Adventure - Outdoor activity
• Community Impact - Action
• Experiment - Experiment
• Teamwork - Helpful
• World - Activity