I did not expect that beach clean could be that fun. It was like a treasure hunt game. Because the beach, even before our cleaning, was already very clean! I had to search it carefully for any litter hidden in the sands - like a detective conducting a carpet search for forensic evidences.

The beach was at Southwold a coastal town in Suffolk and about one hour and fifteen minutes’ car drive from Norwich. We, however, were not playing there. The beach clean we did was organised by the Marine Conservation Society and coordinated in Suffolk by the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB Unit (see the third paragraph from here for the meaning of AONB). The purpose of the program is not just to clean beaches but to tackle the whole problem of marine pollution. Because volunteers (like us) record all the litter that is collected, the Marine Conservation Society are able to identify the sources, target offenders and lobby government.

When we arrived at the Southwold beach, a lady from the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB Unit greeted us and explained to us why and what we needed to do for the beach clean. Then each of us was given a plastic bin, a trash pickup tool, a pair of gloves, a box for storing sharp pointed glasses, a sheet and a pencil to record what litter we have collected.

We, a total of 9 people, had in one hour and forty-five minutes, collected trash of 45.7 kg. It included many kinds of trash, even sanitary napkins and condomes. Rubber and plastic formed the majority of the trash. We actually had overdone what we were requied to do. We were asked to clean the beach for 100 metres only but we had made it 400 metres!

Southwold is part of Suffolk Coast and Heaths, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).  Created by the legislation of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act of 1949, AONBs represent precious landscapes whose distinctive character and natural beauty are so outstanding that it is in the British’s interest to safeguard them. Currently there are 49 AONBs in the U.K.. Their care has been entrusted to the local authorities, organisations, community groups and the individuals who live and work within them or who value them.

Southwold was once a very busy fishing port. Nowadays, the harbour area of Southwold (where the beach we cleaned is situated), although still provides sale of freshly caught fish, the boatyard services have become the prominent business there.

In Suffolk, there are two nuclear power stations at Sizewell (the structure with white dome in the left most picture), even visible for many miles along the coast of Southwold. one of them is no longer in operation but remains harmful for health for decades even after ceasing operation. The British government is now proposing to build the third nuclear power station at Sizewell. Inevitably the people in Suffolk and especially the environmental groups there object this proposal.