(Northern, Western and Eastern Cape) - SanCor Documents/Reports... · The 2010 International Coastal Cleanup. 2010 Was again a growth year for the International Coastal Cleanup in

INTERNATIONAL COASTAL CLEANUP

2010

South Africa (Northern, Western and Eastern Cape)

Mouth of the Salt River Cleanup – Nature’s Valley – 18 September

Enviromark Plastic Federation of South Africa P.O. Box 13511, N1 City, 7463

Phone: 021 591 5512 Fax: 021 591 5516 E-mail: [email protected]

The 2010 International Coastal Cleanup.

2010 Was again a growth year for the International Coastal Cleanup in South Africa and we can with all sincerity say that the event as calendar event has with Arbor Day become benchmarks as successful environmental events. It is a team effort and without this growing team we just could not achieve the successes that are outlined in this report. This report is also stepping away from the previous reports where we summarized each cleanup that

took place in the month as it made the report too bulky and time consuming. With the increased

cleanups this would have made it unwieldy but the individual cleanups is outlined in a table which is

available on request.

A. Preface.

1. In March, South Africa was represented for the first time at the International Coastal Cleanup Conference in Cancun, Mexico and it was informative to see that the issues regarding cleanups are not just limited to our shores.

2. At the conference it was highlighted that there has been an increase in funding for environmental and community projects even in a time, like now, when the economy has taken a slump. This was indeed, very visible in South Africa and I outline the increased sponsorship in the section dedicated to it.

3. With the permanent employment of the National Coordinator with the Plastics Federation of South Africa there has been an increase in various projects that the Plastics Federation is involved in the coastal and marine environment. More of these actions are outlined in the section dedicated to that issue at the end of the report.

4. The International Coastal Cleanup has as one of its main goals the raising of awareness of the issue of marine debris and littering. This has always been a part of the project that did not meet its set objectives but in this year we have started to tackle the problem by the employment of a company to support our media efforts and this meant more than 500 % increase in media exposure. With this team on board already for the 2011 cleanup, we can just increase and meet our awareness goals.

5. With all this mentioned growth as outlined above we have been able to increase the amount of volunteers. This is outlined in the section dedicated to as well as the unforeseen challenges in regard volunteering in that section.

Lastly, we were tasked by Sonya Besteiro, Associate Director of the Ocean Conservancy at the Cancun Conference to see if we can identify a Coordinator for the Namibian Coastline. This was done and Mr. Gys Reitz of NACOMA (Namibian Coastal Management) managed the efforts in that country this year. B. Summary.

Between the 6th and the 30th of September 2010, 11 867 (7746 in 2009) volunteers cleared debris from the beaches, underwater areas and waterways of the Northern, Western and Eastern Cape. Of this number of volunteers, 4 756 audited (2 943 in 2009) the material they picked up on a standard datasheet of the Ocean Conservancy as an International effort to see what material is the most prevalent in various waterways and marine systems on an International level.

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International Coastal Cleanup 2010 report for West, East and North Cape provinces – South Africa.

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In 2009, volunteers removed >11.5 tons of litter in audited cleanups. This year we removed >13.65 tons* of litter. (* The total tonnage removed and distance cleaned is of course much higher than this figure as this figure only reflects the data from audited cleanups). As in 2009 there was an increase in the cleanups in informal settlements. This was due to the need for it and communities using the opportunity to clean their area at the end of the winter months. Due to increased marketing of the event we also had cleanups further away from the coastal zone areas and many of the “corporate cleanups” happened in these areas. During the last five years there has also been a growth in effort from the bigger urban municipalities to ensure that the coastline in these areas is cleaned on a daily basis as they depend on tourism to a large degree. This has resulted in more cleanups focusing on areas of concern where this service is not provided with an increase in logistics for the various coordinators.

Once again a show of support for this calendar event is the fact that most of the beach coordinators of previous cleanups repeated their support and we have increased our effort with new local coordinators.

Caps lids

Plastic Bags

Food wrappers/containers

Beverage bottles (2l and less)

Straws/stirrers

Cigarette filters

Rope

Fishing line

Beverage bottles/glass

Cups, Plates, Forks, knives, spoon

0 2000 4000 6000 8000

Ten

item

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ed th

e m

ost i

n au

dite

d cl

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ps

Amount of items collected in audited cleanups

Top ten items in 2010 International Coastal Cleanup


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Top 10 items collected in past 3 years audited cleanups in Northern, Western and Eastern Cape.

2008 2009 2010

Plastic caps from bottles 10 507 items.



Plastic beverage bottles 6 001 items.

Plastic beverage bottles 4 424 items.

Plastic Bags 4 867 items.

Plastic Bags 3 309 items

Plastic Bags 2 546 items.

Food wrappers and containers 4 199 items

Glass beverage bottles 2 940 items.

Food wrappers and containers 1 934 items.

Plastic beverage bottles 4 041 items

Food wrapper and containers 2 629 items.

Rope 1 811 items.

Plastic Straws/Stirrers 3 806 items.

Cigarette filters 2 487 items.



Rope 2 334 items


Rope 2 438 items.


Fishing line 1 513 items.

Fishing line 1 752 items.

Fishing Line 1 855 items.



Beverage Cans 1 440 items.

Beverage cans 824 items.

Cups, plates, forks, knives, spoons 1 014 items.

• Plastic caps from bottles is for the third year running the most numerous item collected and this was

found even on beaches where there is a structured cleanup on a daily basis as on the Blue Flag Beaches. Caps outnumber the other individual items by far.

• There has been steady decrease in the amount of all litter collected in the 3 recorded years, for instance plastic beverage bottles have dropped from the number 2 spot in 2009 to 4th in this year’s cleanup, but the amount of individual numbers was not reduced significantly. Its position was taken over by an item that has shown steady growth since the 2008 cleanup - that of food wrappers and containers.

• Another item that has increased noticeably is the amount of plastic bags. Plastic shopping bags formed the bulk of this figure.

• Another item that has shown a marked increase is that of plastic straws and plastic sticks from lollypops and ear buds.

• A new item on this year’s list was plastic cutlery to number 10 with beverage cans being removed to the 12th position below number 11 position held by clothing and shoes which has also increased since previous cleanups.

C. Sponsorships.

To increase the amount of volunteers and establish a streamlined logistical coordination for the future we have started with “Banner Cleanups” and these have formed the bulk in the increase of sponsorships.


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(A Banner cleanup means: A large banner provided by the sponsor and branded with the wording – International Coastal Cleanup with the logos of the Plastics Federation and Ocean Conservancy on as well. By not adding the year we made the banner generic and will it be used for upcoming ICC’s).

The sponsorship varied for the various Banner Cleanups and there was in some cases a cross

sponsorship for other cleanups.

2010 Sponsors:

1. Plastics Federation of South Africa – 70 000 Refuse bags for Western, Southern and

Northern Cape and 30 000 for Eastern Cape. 2. Pick ‘n Pay - R10 000 in vouchers and support of cleanup in Cape Town V & A Waterfront. The

vouchers were distributed to most of the local coordinators and were used as either prizes in

the cleanups or to buy support material for their cleanups. Pick n Pay has since the inception of

the International Coastal Cleanup in the Cape Provinces been very active in their support and

their support is one of the corner stone’s of the event. 3. Ripcurl – T shirts for all 50 coordinators, large amount of prizes for their Banner Cleanups and

3 banners. This is the first time that the clothing company has come on board with our efforts

and unfortunately the material arrived too late for proper distribution to the 3 planned Banner

Cleanups was reduced to cover only the underwater cleanup in the Cape Town Harbour and the

bulk of the prizes have been sealed and stored for the 2011 cleanup. 4. Fortune Bottlers of Coca Cola – Soft drinks for various cleanups in the Eastern and Southern Cape

areas, 10 Banners. Fortune Bottlers is apart from IBA Bottlers in the Kwazulu Natal area an organization that has adhered to the call from Coca Cola as International sponsor to support the International Coastal Cleanup in South Africa. Soft drinks, as cleanups can be thirsty work, is one of the items that we need at all cleanups and with their support we were able to support most of the cleanups with adequate material.

5. Kelppak – R15 000 for support of cleanups within the False Bay, Cape Point, Kommetjie to Hout Bay areas. Transport of school and community groups is always a need for many of the cleanups. Kelppak is a live kelp harvester in the Soetwater area and we used their funding for the following:

i. Transport and catering for school from Khayalitsha to Integrated Maritime Technologies in Simon’s town for cleanup at Boulders beach and have educational presentations on marine science.

ii. Transport and catering for Ocean View Schools to the Soetwater Environmental Education Centre for cleanup on that coastline.

iii. Transport and catering for group from various schools to Robben Island. iv. Payment for T-shirts of Underwater dive by OMSAC in Murray’s Harbour on Robben

Island. v. Small payment for transport of school group to beaches in George area under

WESSA supervision. 6. Fima Films – R15 000 for support of cleanups within the Overstrand area. 7. City of Cape Town – The Environmental Capacity Building, Training & Education Section of the

Environmental Resource Management Department sponsored some of the cleanups in Cape Town and surroundings.

8. USABCO – 40 Buckets for use with cleanups in Eastern Cape of great quantities of small pieces of glass.

9. Irvin and Johnson – supported cleanups by the University of Stellenbosch. 10. Transnet – supported cleanups in and around their harbours. 11. Reef – supported a cleanup by the Save our Seas Centre in Kalk Bay.


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12. Peninsula Bottlers of Coca Cola – Donation of soft drinks for various cleanups in the Cape Peninsula. 13. Toyota South Africa – 4 Of the Toyota dealers supported cleanups on the coast.

D. Data Cards.

Within the spread-sheets outlining the individual cleanups (we only supply data cards for volunteers of grade 6 upwards), we have placed a section regarding the amount of data cards that formed the basis of the information collected and the total that was discarded. We noticed in the 2009 cleanup a large amount of data cards that was questionable, unclear or damaged in such a way that it could not be used. These cleanups were then classified as non audited cleanups. A total of 333 cards was discarded with 1 219 cards trusted enough for use We also need to look at the data card for the 2011 as there is some items on the list that needs to be more defined, for instance, the 2Liter or less beverage bottles encapsulates all plastic bottles and does not differentiate between bottles made from either PET or HD plastics. The item straws, stirrers for instance have been used for the plastic stick attached to lollypops. On some beaches the amount of these sticks outnumbered the drinking straws by far.

E. Credit.

Without the local coordinators and volunteers this day would just not be – thanks to all for the hard work!

We want to thank the Ocean Conservancy for their support in our efforts and keeping this event alive and well!

Thanks to David Hughes and Douw Steyn of the Plastic Federation for supporting the cleanup and going that extra mile to ensure that the ICC in South Africa is sustainable. Mr. Hughes will be sorely be missed in the upcoming cleanups and other projects.

One of the biggest supporters of the ICC in South Africa is Anna Dewhurst and her team from Pick ‘n Pay. Thanks Anna for all the laughs and making the ICC easier to coordinate.

New sponsors have made the work also so much easier and I want to thank Ripcurl’s Allana Beales for her support.

Kelpak for their support and trust in our effort – thank you.

Thanks to Fima Films for their support in making sure that the packaging industry takes some responsibility for the material found on the coast. Megan Hainsworth of Fima was a pleasure to work with.

Thanks to Coca Cola for all their support, especially the Fortune bottlers of the Eastern and Southern Cape.

F. Conclusion.

We have already started planning for the International Coastal Cleanup next year on Saturday the 17th of September. We hope that we can increase our efforts yet again. We were also asked by various groups that we establish more cleanup events during the year. Unfortunately we lack the capacity for such an action but we know that this event helps greatly to increase the awareness of marine debris and littering.


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Out of the International Coastal Cleanup the following projects have grown to ensure that we make the sea and coast a safer and cleaner place for all.

Marine Pollution/Debris Activities Programs/Projects initiated by Plastic Federation of South Africa.

1. Operation Clean Sweep [plastic pellets on beaches]: Process is based on USA and UK experience, documentation, etc.

2. Supply data to Japanese Project: Global Monitoring of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), Using Beached Plastic Resin Pellets. Gather samples, especially eastern and western seaboards.

3. Sponsorship of Bird Life SA - Sea Bird Research into effect of plastic pollution on sea birds. 4. Promotion of "divert-from-landfill" strategy and waste management knowledge transfer - working

with municipalities to improve sorting and collection at source. Especially to reduce transfer of land based debris into rivers and then into the marine environment. Industry Waste Management Plan / Waste Act are relevant.

5. Network Relationship Project - with SANCCOB (Conservation of Coastal Birds) on dead sea bird autopsies to identify ingested plastics and assess rate of sea bird deaths. Focus is in W and E Cape - fishing industry areas.

6. Network Relationship Project with W Cape SPCA on seal entanglement - extent, type of plastics, deaths, etc - based on weekly beach sweep programme

7. SA Harbour Cleanup: focus on eight commercial harbours in 2010, and then ongoing, in conjunction with Transnet and KZN Wildlife. Transnet connects with local municipalities for support re land-based debris. Establish permanent Recycling capacity for selected materials for port tenants, and big business to be involved.

8. Cape Town Harbour [commercial and tourist areas] marine debris research project to assess the role and percentage of plastics.

9. Education and awareness - plastics pollution and cleanups - use PFSA web site: www.cleanup-SA.co.za - as management tool for marine activities and situations and education / awareness.

10. Sponsor special flat-bottomed plastic boat (The "Enviromark"] for Liesbeeck River [through central Cape Town] to be used for clean ups of river. A second boat has now been donated to clean the Beachwood Mangroves outside Durban as well.

11. Rural coastline pollution / marine debris research project with University of Walter Sisulu - Wild Coast especially.

12. Awareness and Education programmes, especially for scholars - through permanent exhibitions at marine education centres - eight in total, at major centres.

2010 International Coastal Cleanup(North, West and Eastern Cape).

2010 – Top 10.

Plastic caps23%

Plastic bags15%

Plastic Food wrappers13%Plastic bottles

12%

Plastic straws11%

Cigarette Filters8%

Rope7%

Fishing line5%

Glass bottle3%

Plastic cutlery3%

2010 International Coastal Cleanup. The figures.

Amount of volunteers 11 876

Audited cleanup - volunteers 4 756

Un-audited cleanups - volunteers 7 120

Distance cleaned > 111.18 km*

Weight collected > 13.65 tons*

* Un-audited cleanups weight and distance not included.

Western Cape

Western Cape

Plastic caps

Plastic bags

Food wrappers

Plastic bottles < 2L

Straws/plastic sticks

Cigarette filters

Rope

Fishing line

Plastic cutlery

Glass bottles

Eastern Cape

Eastern Cape

Plastic caps

Plastic bags

Food wrappers



Cigarette filters

Rope

Fishing line

Plastic cutlery

Glass bottles

Northern Cape

Northern Cape

Plastic caps

Plastic bags

Food wrappers



Food wrappers

Rope

Glass bottles

Beverage cans

Plastic sheeting

Top ten items for past 3 years(2008, 2009 & 2010).

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

2008

2009

2010

Trends? (Last 3 years data).

•Decrease – 3rd year running but still number 1 ↓

Plastic caps

•Decrease for 2nd year running ↓

Plastic Bottles

•Marked increase in 2010 – especially Western Cape ↑

Plastic Bags

•Decrease for 3rd year running. ↓

Glass bottles

•Marked increase in 2010 ↑

Food wrappers

•Increase in 2010 but stay at level 6. →

Cigarette filters

•Increase in 2010 but stay at level 7. →

Rope

•Marked increase in 2010 cleanup. ↑


•Increase but stay at level 9. →

Fishing line

•Tins replaced by plastic cutlery. +

Plastic cutlery

The 2010 International Coastal Cleanup has shown again that between 80 and 90 % of all waste found on the coast originates from the land and not the sea.

Plastic forms the bulk of that litter – plastic debris at sea and on the coast can be seen as a plea for a change in human behaviour – “DO NOT LITTER!”