World Ocean Day: Cork's coastal communities take to the beaches for a spring clean
Garretstown Beach: one of the sites of World Ocean Day beach clean-ups. Picture: Andy Gibson.
Wednesday is World Ocean Day, and across the globe, people are being asked to consider the questions facing the world's deep waters, including industrial pollution and marine litter, as well as the ongoing 30/30 campaign, to protect 30% of the planet's land and oceans to help stabilise climate in face of impending change.
Close to home, the beaches and coastal towns of County Cork will be hotbeds of community action, as local volunteer groups and individuals head out on a clean-up to mark the day's importance.
The National Spring Clean programme has joined up with the Clean Coasts environmental charity to help these groups be part of the solution, distributing clean-up kits and organising major excursions for the day that's in it.
400 volunteers across over 30 clean-ups will take to beaches and bodies of water to clean-up the environment, and join like-minded people in learning about local marine biodiversity. They join over 4000 national volunteers across over 230 clean-ups across the country.
Cork Harbour Festival will also host a SUP and Kayak clean-up, where participants will get their hands dirty directly in the River Lee (see below panel), while this month has also seen the releases of new Enjoy and Protect guides, the ongoing Love Your Coast photography contest, and corporate clean-up events that removed 31kg of marine litter from Irish beaches.
- For more information, head here.
Clean Coasts encourage making the most of Ireland’s coasts and beaches, but also to help preserve marine environments with simple actions and small lifestyle changes.
The 13th annual edition of this photography competition is now open for entries. Amateur photographers are invited to coastal communities, environments, or waterways and enter their best shots over the past couple of months. Details and more info on a €5000 prize fund are here.
Cork Harbour Festival is currently underway, celebrating the second-largest natural harbour in the world. As part of it, Clean Coasts will join forces with Cork County and City Councils for a Kayak & SUP River Clean Up.
Clean Coasts have engaged corporate employees, including staff from Brown Thomas, for a series of beach cleans, including a trip to Garretstown Beach.
To celebrate National Biodiversity Week in May, Clean Coasts released two marine biodiversity directories; the Marine Zones and Habitats directory explores these zones and habitats a little further, while the Marine Species directory goes into the wildlife that inhabits them.
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