The UK has around 18,000km of coastline which includes all kinds of valuable ecosystems from rockpools to sand dunes to estuaries. Many of us will have been lucky enough to visit the coast on school holidays and some of us will even have the privilege of living with a beautiful beach or coastal stretch right on their doorstep. Being an island, you are never more than 70 miles from the sea in Britain and our coastlines are beautiful landscapes that we need to appreciate and protect.
Lots of UK beaches have Blue Flag Awards which means they have met the criteria for water quality, environmental management and safety. This is fantastic as it means they are clean and safe to visit with our children and pets, and can support wildlife that thrive in their ecosystems. However, our beaches are still subject to littering, whether that be from visitors, tourists or wild campers, or washed up by the sea itself. Microplastics are a real problem as they are invisible and cannot simply be picked up out of the environment.
The recent documentary 'Seaspiracy' highlighted the impact of the fishing industries on our seas, oceans and coastlines. It claims that the majority of plastic waste in the oceans comes from fishing nets and that a huge amount of damage and devastation is carried out by trawler fishing. When we buy and eat fish, we contribute to this industry and this in turn may have an impact on the biodiversity in our seas and the quality of our coastlines both at home and abroad.
We can take some simple steps to protect coastlines everywhere. Making efforts to clean up the beach or change behaviours that prevent beaches from getting polluted or degraded are both equally effective.
🐬 Take part in a beach clean up - get a community group or a school group to do a litter pick along a stretch of coastline; this not only actively cleans the beach but it helps educate and raise awareness of how polluted our beaches can get
🐬 Stop buying plastic items - we know this already but it's so hard to fully commit to; make one swap this week that will save some more plastic
🐬 Wash your clothes with ecofriendly detergent - our waterways have a lot of chemicals in them from both households and industry; try a different detergent that us gentler on the microorganisms that live in the water
🐬 Reduce your fish intake - eating less fish will reduce demand over time; this will allow fish populations to grow back and reestablish natural balance
🐬 Visit the coast - if you don't live near the coast, take a trip there or plan a visit with your local school; there is no alternative for actually visiting a place to help bring about an appreciation and understanding of it
If you live near the coast, why not develop a Beach School either alongside or instead of a Forest School! Any learning in the outdoors is so important and all environments have something valuable to teach us. Click here to find out more.
