This picture shows the shocking extent of marine pollution off the Cornish coast, with the tide of waste washed ashore at Penhale beach at Perranporth during the recent storms.

However thanks to the hard work of The Conservation Volunteers in Cornwall the beach has been transformed.

Armed with rubbish bags and litter picking sticks, the volunteers were joined by many local people determined to improve the popular sandy shoreline before wildlife was affected.

Among the items found were plastic bags, fragments of plastic, bits of fishing nets and even the odd shoe.

The crew worked tirelessly on Tuesday, January 14 to clear up the rubbish before the high tide returned it to the sea, and by the end of the day more than 100 bags of rubbish had been collected.

Tom David from The Conservation Volunteers Cornwall, said: “It’s so important to keep the beach clean. The mess was unbelievable and it was posing a serious threat to the wildlife, as well as making the beach unsafe and unpleasant for visitors.

“You can look back at the end of the day and see a completely different beach behind you. When we started, we barely see the beach itself because of all the rubbish, but thanks to the hard work of everyone here, the beach is in a much better state.
“I would like to thank everyone who helped today for making such a difference to the local area – they should be very proud of what they have achieved.”

The Conservation Volunteers Cornwall has asked that if anyone else would like to help with the clean-up over the next few days, to take a bag with them to the beach and collect the litter. They can then leave the bag at the public access sign by the military camp, and TCV will take it away with the rest of the rubbish.

And this is how it looked after all the hard work.

Falmouth Packet:

For more information about the group visit their Facebook page www.facebook.com/tcvcornwall or visit their website www.tcv.org.uk/tuckingmill.