Big clean-up coming up for Tasman Bay beaches

Date:  12 July 2010

A big community spring clean of Tasman Bay beaches in time for summer is planned this November and a call is going out to local groups to sign up to take part in it.

It is aimed to get hundreds of people involved in the Big Beach Clean-up on Saturday 20 November, clearing rubbish from a staggering 291 km of coast between Marahau and Cable Bay. The coastal clean-up primarily covers public-accessed areas, taking in beaches and also some rocky shoreline such as Nelson city’s Boulder Bank.

Organisers, the Department of Conservation, the Tasman District Council, Nelson City Council and NELMAC Ltd, are asking Nelson city and Tasman Bay community groups and organisations to sign up now to take on a stretch of beach to clean.

Adventure race champion and organiser Nathan Fa’avae is championing the Tasman Bay Big Beach Clean-up and says the beach tidy-up will provide a healthier coastal environment for both people and wildlife.

“As locals we get a huge amount of pleasure out of relaxing and playing on our beautiful Tasman Bay beaches. They are also a hub for the thousands of holidaymakers who come to our region in summer seeking sun, sand and sea.

“The Big Beach Clean-Up enables us as a community to come together to make them cleaner, healthier, more attractive and enjoyable for ourselves and for our visitors.

“The rubbish found on beaches comes from littering on land and at sea. It is not only unsightly, it can be harmful to people and lethal for seabirds and other marine life. Plastic bags have been found in the stomachs of dead marine wildlife, and carelessly discarded rope can entangle seals, dolphins and whales and lead to their deaths.

“I encourage people to join up and join in to care for our beaches - not just this year but in future years as an annual spring clean of our beaches.”

Rudy Tetteroo of DOC, which is leading the beach clean-up, said a wide range of groups could take part.

“Sporting, service and recreation clubs, environmental, social and community groups, businesses, workplace staff are just some of the groups we are encouraging to take part.”

“There are 50 sections of coast to be cleaned, of varying lengths and ranked easy, medium and difficult in terms of the ease of access and the terrain. We are inviting groups to sign up to clean a section suited to the size of their group and the capability of their members.”

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