Mission Briefing
Operation
Clean Up!
A Sal & Shelly's Seaside Adventure mission
Shelly
Sal... why is there so much rubbish on the beach? Did people just leave it here?
Sal
Some of it, yeah, but loads of it actually travelled here, Shelly. From drains, rivers... even from other countries! The sea carries everything.
Shelly
No way! From other countries?! How does that even happen?
Sal
The ocean is basically a giant conveyor belt. Let me show you, then we'll sort some of this mess out together!
Help Sort the Beach!
Tap a piece of rubbish, then tap the right bin
Things washed up on Margate Beach
♻️
Recycle
0
🗑️
General Waste
0
🌿
Leave It!
0
So how does rubbish end up here?
- 🌧️When litter is dropped on the ground, rain washes it into drains, which lead straight to the sea
- 📦Almost half of all beach plastic started as everyday rubbish, a crisp packet miles away from here
- 🚢Fishing gear, ropes and plastic can fall off boats and ships out at sea
- 🌍Some rubbish travels enormous distances, what you find today might have started its journey in another country
- 🔬Tiny plastic pellets called nurdles spill during manufacturing and wash onto beaches!
The invisible problem: microplastics
- 👕When you wash clothes, tiny plastic fibres escape, too small to filter out, straight into the sea
- 🚗Car tyres shed plastic dust onto roads. Rain washes it into rivers and out to the ocean
- 🐟Sea creatures eat these tiny plastics by mistake and they work their way up the food chain
- 👁️You can't see them, but microplastics have been found in sand, seawater and sea life all around UK beaches
What else is hiding in the water?
- 🧴Soaps, oils and chemicals washed down the sink can end up in the sea and harm sea creatures
- 🌱Fertilisers from gardens and farms wash into rivers, making certain plants grow wildly and starving other sea life of oxygen
- 🚿Even "flushable" wipes aren't really flushable, they block drains and wash up on beaches
The Explorer's Pledge
Tick off everything you promise to do. Sal's watching! 👀
0 of 7 pledges made
- 🗑️Pick up litter when I see it even if it's not mine
- 🪠Only put the right things down the sink no oils, wipes or chemicals
- ♻️Use less single-use plastic where I can
- 👕Wash clothes less often or cooler to reduce microfibres
- 🌱Use eco-friendly soaps and cleaning products when possible
- 📱Tell at least one friend what I learned today
- 🏖️Come back to Margate beach and check on it!
Shelly
Wow... the beach looks beautiful. But there's SO much more going on than I ever realised
Sal
That's exactly it. And that's why what you do matters. Every single piece you pick up is a win for this beach.
Mission Complete!
You've completed Operation Clean Up.
Sal, Shelly & Coral are so proud of you!