How Clean Is Your... Beach?

No, I haven't caught a dose of the Kim & Aggies, don't panic. I'm still me.

With the financial climate not looking like it's going to get a great deal healthier at the moment, more & more people are likely to be staying within the UK for their holidays this year.  It's like the 1970's all over again.  We're actually really lucky in the UK, blessed with around 11,000 miles of coastline, according to Ordnance Survey (the map people).  OK, not all of that is accessible, and even that which is, it's not all the white sandy beaches of our dreams, but they're ours, and need our help.  I was lucky enough to grow up on the coast, and spent many happy hours on the beaches nearby, swimming, climbing, collecting shells, and generally being a kid.  I'd like Squeaky to have the same privilege.

My parents still live by the seaside (I moved, boooooo), but in a fortnight's time, Squeaky & I will be off to one of my childhood haunts, Sand Bay, near Weston-super-Mare, to join in with the Marine Conservation Society and their Big Beach Clean Up event, sponsored by Marks & Spencer.  There are Beach Clean Ups going on across the UK over the weekend of 11-13 May 2012, so there's bound to be one near you.  We were already planning to visit my parents, so we're going to their local event, rather than one closer to home (in case you were worried that my carbon footprint would be bigger than the impact of my beach cleaning).

It's been a good while since I've been to Sand Bay, I'm interested to see how time has treated the area, as well as seeing what interesting items we might find on the beach.  Apparently, during a similar clean up event, Marine Conservation Society volunteers found all sorts of things, including a plastic skeleton & a portable toilet!  Not to mention the cans, bottles, and plastic bags you'd expect.

The Marine Conservation Society are making quite a day of it, with children's activities and a barbecue for volunteers at our location, but each location varies.  Take a look at the map and see if there's a beach clean up going on near you (nowhere in the UK is more than 70 miles from the coast, so you stand a chance), and join Squeaky & I in cleaning up our beaches.  If the weather's nice, we'll get an added dose of vitamin D, if not, I'll just introduce her to the delights of a British seaside holiday!

Oh, and I've had confirmation that equipment will be provided on the day, just bring suitably outdoor clothing - wellies/boots, coats & clothes you don't mind getting a bit mucky!

If you can't make it, or you can, but your children can't, why not visit School Of Fish, the children's website for the event? There's games, downloads, "codcasts" (I love that!), and all sorts of info so you and your family can get involved even if you can't make it to the beach.  See you there!