SEP Supports Big Blue Ocean Cleanup

Posted 18 May 2021

By heather Heather Blackford

Our team recently took advantage of some favourable weather and downtime to get together and clean up one of our local beaches in the North West. 

After over a year of working remotely, combining a social catch up with helping a cause such as the Big Blue Ocean Cleanup was not only good for the environment, but also for the mental wellbeing of our staff.

On arrival, the area seemed relatively clean, however, even after several hours of scouring the beach the (socially distanced) team were still removing items ranging from plastic lids to fishing equipment. According to the Big Blue Ocean Cleanup, plastics are recognised as the most substantial pollutant in our oceans, accounting for 92% of all marine litter in our seas. Since the invention of synthetic plastic in  the early 1900s, 9% has been recycled, 12% has been incinerated and the remaining 79% has ended up accumulating in our natural environment, either in landfill or dumped as waste. Currently over 10 million tonnes of plastic enters our ocean annually!

For more information on the Big Blue Ocean Cleanup, visit their website.