Litter – Scathing Assessment – Communities and Local Government Committee Report
CLG House of Commons Committee ‘We take no satisfaction in it but the evidence of our own eyes, the photographs tweeted to us, and the evidence we took during this inquiry lead us to the conclusion that England is a litter-ridden country compared to most of Europe, North America and Japan. Change is needed.(Paragraph 66)’
‘The failure to make a noticeable improvement in litter levels in the last 12 years points to a lack of vigour, if not complacency, within Government over the past decade. There is a division of responsibilities between departments which, as it currently operates, creates problems for industry and volunteer groups and has neither reduced litter levels nor stopped the rise in fly-tipping. We recommend that the Government create a national litter strategy for England with a clear framework for action. This must be underpinned with a coordinating role for local councils within their respective areas. (Paragraph 74)’
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmselect/cmcomloc/607/60702.html
Great British Beach Clean 2014 – Results
‘The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) is very pleased to launch the results of our Great British Beach Clean, which took place from 19th – 22nd September 2014. A record number of more than 5,300 volunteers took part, across more than 300 events nationally. You can download it from our website here: www.mcsuk.org/beachwatch. In 2013, recorded beach litter levels across the UK reached their highest point for 20 years. Sadly, this worrying trend has continued in 2014. Across the UK, more than 2,457 pieces of litter were recorded for every kilometre cleaned, representing an increase of 6% on 2013. Overall, despite existing measures aimed at reducing beach litter, the 2014 results represent an increase of 135% since MCS began conducting Beachwatch surveys in 1994.’
Five to 12 million tonnes of plastic are going into the ocean each year
‘4th April 2015 The Ecologist: An unimaginably large volume of plastic debris is reaching the world’s oceans every year, write Britta Denise Hardesty & Chris Wilcox – and it’s set for a ten-fold increase over the next decade, adding to the already terrible toll on marine life from turtles to seals, sea birds and fish. The solution must be to give waste plastic value – if we can find a way. Plastic has enormous potential for destruction. Ghost nets and fishing debris snag and drown turtles, seals, and other marine wildlife. Around 10,000 turtles have been trapped by derelict nets in Australia’s Gulf of Carpentaria region alone.
You might have heard the oceans are full of plastic, but how full exactly? Around 8 million metric tonnes go into the oceans each year, according to the first rigorous global estimate published in Science. That’s equivalent to 16 shopping bags full of plastic for every metre of coastline (excluding Antarctica). By 2025 we will be putting enough plastic in the ocean (on our most conservative estimates) to cover 5% of the earth’s entire surface in cling film each year.
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