The Friends of Poldhu turned out in force last Friday to help clean up the abundance of rubbish that has washed up on Poldhu Cove on the Lizard.

The National Trust were joined by an enthusiastic group of local |residents, holiday makers and |children who has volunteers to help with the tidy up. Together they |tackled the vast array of plastic that has littered the shoreline in the |aftermath of the recent storms.

Large piles of tangled fishing net, cigarette lighters, the odd shoe, and plastic from around the world has all been found on the shoreline.

Plastic is not only unsightly and dangerous to beach users but has a detrimental effect on marine life. Over 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals die every year from ingestion and entanglement in marine litter. But it is not only the physical effects of all of this plastic floating in our oceans; the worst part is that it doesn’t degrade.

The Friends group first formed over a year ago when local beach users joined forces with the National Trust and Poldhu Beach Café to tackle the ever increasing problem of marine litter in the local area.

Elle Parsons, Ranger for the National Trust said: “The group has made an incredible difference to Poldhu and nearby beaches, their continual efforts has had a real impact here and brought the local community together to look after the places we all love”.

But it is not only the vast swathes of plastic that have been brought in as a result of the storms.

Elle Parsons said “we have seen large numbers of seabirds that were sadly unable to survive the extreme weather we have been experiencing. Many of our beaches have been |scattered with dead Razorbills, Guillemots and Puffins as well as young seals”

Anyone who finds these birds are asked not to touch them, but if they are ringed then please note the |number and send it to elle.parsons@nationaltrust.org.uk along with any photos.

There have also been reports of palm oil appearing on beaches from Poldhu up to Porthleven, as such dog walker are asked to be vigilant