UK coasts immersed in plastic waste endanger wildlife

Plastic debris made up of bottles and packaging are inundating some of the UK’s most beautiful beaches and remote coastline, endangering wildlife from basking sharks to puffins.

A Greenpeace research ship has spent the past two months assessing the impact of plastic waste on the Scottish coast and islands.

A more detailed analysis of the results will be undertaken by marine scientists on the Greenpeace ship Beluga II over the next two months. The initial findings show that plastic waste was found on every beach surveyed and microplastic and other plastic fragments were found in the feeding grounds of marine life. Plastic bottles, bags and packaging were also found in birds’ nests at significant seabird colonies, including the Bass Rock and Isle of May.

Tisha Brown, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “It cannot be right that our beaches, seas and the stunning wildlife they are home to should become the final dumping ground for throwaway plastic bottles and other plastic trash. We need urgent action from governments and from major soft drinks companies which produce billions of single-use plastic bottles every year, like Coca-Cola, to stop the flow of plastic into the sea.”