SURFING campaigners have welcomed a local authority's commitment to an initiative to reduce the amount of plastic in the world’s oceans.
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council has pledged to end its use of single-use plastics and for Redcar to join Saltburn and Marske in achieving Plastic Free Communities status.
As part of the project, the council will commit to removing all single-use plastics from its own operations as well as working with local businesses and traders to reduce their plastic waste.
Local activists have been fighting to clean up the beaches, and Saltburn and Marske achieved Plastic Free Communities status in April 2018.
Nick Noble, co-owner of the Saltburn Surf School, said he has noticed a significant improvement in the standard of the beaches since the scheme has been introduced but there is still much to be done.
He added: “Saltburn is a little oasis in the middle of a lot of litter.
“The council’s commitment is a step in the right direction and will set an example to members of the public – it leads the way.”
The local authority will encourage members of the community to act as Recycling Ambassadors, increase recycling bins in public areas, and carry out regular beach litter picks.
The national Plastic Free Communities project was launched by the charity Surfers Against Sewage and has 331 communities currently signed up.
Councillor Alec Brown, the council’s cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said: “As a coastal borough, we’re on the front line against plastics.
“The seas are not ours to litter and our careless actions lead to the deaths of millions of fish, birds and other sea life which eat the plastics we disregard.
“Recently we launched a scheme where people could receive a reusable water bottle in return for handing in six single-use plastic bottles. We were confident this would prove popular, but we didn’t expect to hand out more than 80 bottles on the first day alone.
“Everyone hates seeing litter on our beaches and groups like our partners in the Plastic Free Communities project work really hard in keeping them clean. While there is a problem with some locals not disposing of their waste properly, we’re also the victim of litter washing up on shores from all over the world. More than half our beach waste is estimated to be single-use plastics."
According to Greenpeace, an estimated 12.7 million tonnes of plastic find their way into our oceans each year.
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