The UK’s leading marine charity, the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), is urging people who love the Cornish coast to join Environment Minister and local MP, George Eustice, as he helps to pick up rubbish on a beach in the north of the county to gauge the growing problem of beach litter for himself.

George Eustice, Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Conservative MP for Camborne, Redruth and Hayle, will join volunteers at a beach clean at Porthtowan, near St Agnes on Monday September 21.

Mr Eustice, who cleaned Porthtowan beach for the first time last year, will be able to see any changes to the amount of litter collected and begin to see any trends emerging. Last year, common items found at Porthtowan included bottle caps and lids, fishing net and net pieces, plastic pieces and rope.

MCS runs regular beach cleans around the UK which culminate in the Great British Beach Clean over the weekend of the 18th-21st September.

During the last two decades, MCS data from hundreds of UK beaches shows a steady rise in beach litter, which is not only unsightly for visitors but can have devasting effects on wildlife both on the beach, around the coast and at sea.

MCS Coastal Pollution Officer, Rachel Wyatt, will be leading the Great British Beach Clean at Porthtowan says she’s delighted the Minister is back for a second visit: “If you’re not a regular beach goer or you don’t live by the sea, beach litter is often out of sight – and therefore out of mind. We’re delighted that the Minister, who is county born and bred, has once again agreed to come and help clean up Porthtowan.”

After last year’s event the Minister said “Our beaches are enjoyed by millions of people as well as providing a vital habitat for a wide range of wildlife, so it’s important we keep them clean and litter free. That’s why I was delighted to support the Marine Conservation Society with their beach clean-up at Porthtowan.”

MCS says it hopes to get a record number of people cleaning beaches around the UK during its Great British Beach Clean weekend and is looking for volunteers to join George Eustice at Porthtowan.

“Our domestic habits over the last 50 years or so have resulted in dirty beaches. We throw more stuff away than ever. Plastic in the marine environment may take hundreds of years to break down and it washes up or is blown onto beaches in bits from micro pieces to larger chunks. Thankfully, many Cornish beaches are cleaned daily by the council between May and September, but there are many less popular or difficult to reach beaches that aren’t, and on these the amount of litter is quite shocking,” says Rachel.

MCS believes there is no silver bullet to this complex problem. However, this only places greater emphasis on the strategic role of Government to review the effectiveness of existing measures and to develop new measures where needed, says Rachel Wyatt. “The Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Assembly have already published national marine litter strategies and we want to see similar strategies for England and Wales.

"If you live in Cornwall and are fed up with the litter on your local beach, why not sign up to the clean at Porthtowan and tell George Eustice, in person, what you would like to see the Government doing?"