The Cock and 7,500 participants, 11,5 tonnes of garbage and more than 76 kilometers of beach re-clean beaches. That are the penalty figures of the tenth Eneco Clean Beach Cup. Last year it went to 5.5 tons of litter. “The more volunteers participate, but also there is more plastic in circulation”, says organiser Sven Fransen.
The initiative started with a few hundred participants, but has grown an important symboolevenement. In every town along our coast today, solid waste is removed, from De Panne on Oostende to Knokke-Heist. 22 surfclubs names with fun part. But also outside our borders they flew on the Clean Beach Cup-cart, such as in the Dutch Cadzand and Northern-French towns of Bray Dunes, Zuydcoote, Leffrinckoucke and Dunkirk. In total, if the organization no less than the 7,500 voluntary afvalruimers welcome together 11,5 tons of waste from the beach picked. For comparison: last year were 4.000 participants to 5.5 tonnes. It is logical that the more participants the more waste can pick up and be better able to search for litter. “But there is also more plastic in circulation and therefore also more plastic in our seas and on beaches,” says organizer Sven Fransen. “Just think of the whale that recently came in the news with 40 kilograms of plastic in its stomach.”