The Channel Islands located in the English Channel to the west of the Contentin peninsula are not immune to plastic pollution in the oceans. Millions of tonnes of plastic waste are emitted every year. These emissions are of such proportions that a majority of these plastics end up in the oceans.
32% of plastic waste ends up in nature and the oceans
According to figures from The SeaCleaner association which fights precisely against this environmental challenge, “Once plastics become waste, only 10% are truly recycled on a global scale, and 32% end up in nature and particularly in the Ocean “. We must also not forget the illegal dumping of garbage which also aggravates the situation.
This plastic pollution is then found throughout the world, even in the waters of the Channel Islands. Indeed, an annual survey on the cleanliness of beaches in Guernsey reveals a particularly worrying finding.
The Clean Earth Trust, a local association which aims to reduce the impact of human activity on the environment, published its report on the island's marine waste in 2023. It analyzed the composition of the water to to collect more precise information on marine pollution.
80% of 27,969 litter items found on Guernsey beaches were plastic
In total, Clean Earth Trust volunteers collected 27,969 pieces of trash weighing more than 600 kg from Guernsey beaches in 2023. This trash was scattered across around 40 beaches. 80% of them were plastic.
Different forms of plastic have been identified. 8,210 pieces of waste collected were “hard” plastic. This is the most common form which pollutes the beaches of the Channel Island. Next come cigarette butts (2,550 were recorded). Food packaging (1,972), small pieces of plastic (1,532) and pieces of rope (1,354) complete the list of plastic waste found in Guernsey.
Marine pollution figures in Guernsey – Photo credit: The Clean Earth Trust
Several beach waste collections were carried out by the volunteers during 2023. On average, they found 168 pieces of waste each time. Moreover, more than half of these objects were of unknown origin.
Community efforts help reduce plastic pollution
“We encourage everyone to do their part by minimizing waste and picking up litter when and where you can,” says Fern Nicholson, the Clean Earth Trust's beach clean-up team manager.
The association also wishes to point out that the situation has improved since 2022. Less rubbish was actually collected in 2023 compared to the 40,000 objects recorded the previous year.
This improvement therefore proves the effectiveness of “continued community efforts to manage and reduce waste” on the island of Guernsey.
Source: BBC
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