Cleaning up our coastlines

With 11 ships sailing the world’s incredible oceans, we’re committed to our responsibility of helping to preserve and protect our marine environment. One of the ways we do this is by giving back to our local communities and the destinations we visit through our programme of coastal cleans.

Every September the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) holds the Great British Beach Clean week. The month also marks International Coastal Cleanup Day on 21 September, so what better time to show our support and play our part in cleaning up our coastlines. Throughout the month, colleagues ship and shore took part in four coastal cleans, spanning three countries and cleaning up over 850kg of waste!

Take a look…

Colleagues from Aurora joined forces with local environment groups in Eidfjord, Norway and cleaned up over 30kg of waste. The coastal clean formed part of ‘Clean Hardangerfjord’, an annual clean-up campaign focused on removing as much waste as possible to preserve the future of this stunning area of the world.

Team members from Azura completed their second clean-up in Malta, cleaning up over 750kg of waste from the area around Fort St Lucian up to Debra point, and the bay of Ghar L-Ahmar. All these areas make up part of Marsaxlokk, which is a beautiful fishing village located in the south eastern region of Malta.

Closer to home, shoreside colleagues took part in two coastal cleans to support our local community. The first at Goatee Beach, Totton, where 27 colleagues cleaned an area of 27,400 meters squared and collected 60kg of waste. Followed by Lee-on-Solent where 25 colleagues braved the blustery weather to clear a further 30kg of waste spanning a 9,000 meters squared area. Thanks to Tower Supplies for providing us with high-vis vests, litter pickers and bag holders free of charge.

We collect data on everything we find on our shoreside coastal cleans and submit this to the Marine Conservation Society (MCS). The MCS use this data to identify trends and patterns over time, lobby Governments for legislative change, influence industry practices, and to drive campaigns in order to stop pollution at the source.

All waste collected is sorted by our partner for responsible waste management, Veolia, for recycling or generating into energy at the Marchwood Energy Recovery Facility.

Sophie Portlock, Vice President, Sustainability said:

“The role we play in cleaning and preserving our coastlines is so important. Not only do we clear waste, but the data collected and submitted to various NGOs (non-government organisations) drives conservation work which leads to a positive impact on our oceans, sea life, and the balance of our vital marine ecosystems.

“Our coastal clean-up programme is successful thanks to the commitment and investment from our colleagues and partners – ship and shore. This year alone we have delivered eight coastal clean-ups resulting in:

• 174,500 meters squared of coastline cleaned
• 1,064 kg of waste cleared
• 4,620 items collected
• 484 hours of time invested

“A huge thank you to everyone involved.”