The Big Beach Clean initiative is back, and Clean Coasts, supported by Cully and Sully, are calling people all across Donegal to register to receive clean-up kits and join the world biggest clean-up.
Last year in county Donegal, over 500 volunteers organised clean-ups in 25 different locations, removing approximately 3 tonnes of litter over the weekend. Moreover, Clean Coasts hosted a Big Beach Clean event that year at Bundoran Beach on Friday the 17th of September, where 9 volunteers removed an additional 75 kg of marine litter.
The Big Beach Clean is an annual call to action and this year it will run from 16th to 18th September, as part of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC), operated internationally by Ocean Conservancy.
It invites communities and volunteers around the country to remove litter from around the Irish coast after the end of the bathing season, and helps heighten awareness about the issue of marine litter serving as an indicator of the magnitude of the problem and help shape future policies and campaigns.
The 2021 results have been shared with Ocean Conservancy and, in Ireland and regionally in Donegal, they have been used to shape Clean Coasts campaigns designed both for registered groups and the general public, tackling the top 10 offenders, such as cigarette butts, plastic bottles and food packaging.
This year, Clean Coasts are calling not only Clean Coasts groups and people who would traditionally be involved in environmental activities to join.
Deric Hartigan (TV presenter), James Kavanagh (presenter and owner of food business Currabinny), Aoife McNamara (fashion designer) and Niamh Maher (travel expert and blogger from Exploring Ireland) are joining this year to make a difference for the ocean and are hoping to inspire more people to sign up for the Big Beach Clean.
Registration will again be open to all residents of Ireland, no matter how far from the coast they are based.
Clean Coasts 2022 Big Beach Clean. Left – right – Elaine Doyle, Clean Coasts Campaigns Officer, Colum O’Sullivan, Founder Cully & Sully, Cullen Allen, Founder Cully & Sully, Proinsias Ó Tuama, founder of Clean Coasts Ballynamona. Photos: Cathal Noonan
As sea lovers and sustainability supporters, Cully and Sully are joining Clean Coasts again and are very excited to be supporting the Big Beach Clean.
“We are big beach & water fans in Cully & Sully and we fully realize the importance of keeping our beaches and waterways clean and useable for everyone to enjoy,” Cullen Allen said.
Sinead McCoy, Coastal Communities Manager, said: “We are asking Clean Coasts groups and any other group that would like to join the effort to sign up to partake in the Big Beach Clean, which runs on the 3rd weekend in September each year, and receive a free beach clean kit.”
The Big Beach Clean will run from the 16th to the 18th of September, and to register, visit the Clean Coasts website at www.cleancoasts.org
