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Greg Ballantine on why only footprints should be left in the sand...

16 Feb 2022

Growing up on Gower, Greg has been passionate about beach cleaning since he was young. He believes casual littering has increased on his local beach. Greg says it is hazardous not only to the environment, but to humans.

“My earliest memories of litter picking are as a little boy clearing rubbish with my grandmother, using her handheld litter picker! Going litter picking makes me feel happy that I’ve done something to help. It also provides an opportunity for me to enjoy nature. I motivate myself by thinking of the positive effect I will have on my local environment.

“Having grown up on Gower, I have noticed more rubbish being left on the beaches. There seems to be a more casual attitude towards leaving litter on the beach. However, there has also been an increase in people who are willing to spare a couple of hours beach cleaning.”

Greg points out the harmful effects of plastic ending up on the beach and he also has concerns about other items of litter that he believes can have a negative impact.

“The beaches are an exceptional case because people are walking around barefooted. The worst thing I have found is knives and serrated barbecue mesh buried in the sand which people could accidentally stand on. Also broken glass bottles are extremely dangerous because often the shards of glass are difficult to see.

Greg says he's also concerned about what impact overfishing, sand dredging and accidental oil spills are having on our oceans.

How does Greg think we can keep our beaches clean from litter?

“I think education is the key because hopefully once people realise how harmful littering is to the environment they’ll stop. I feel there is definitely more awareness of this problem because of increased communication across social media. Social media has also allowed people to organise litter-picking days which have been a huge success. For example, vast amounts of litter including glass bottles are often left on the beach in the evening; then well-meaning locals go down the following morning to clean up the mess.

“Always plan what you’re going to do with your litter before heading to the beach. This could include taking extra bags for rubbish and taking note of where the nearest public rubbish bin is. If the bins are full, take it home with you!

“I feel we all have a part to play when it comes to litter on the beach. It takes no time to put your litter in the bins or to take it home. It’s also nice to know you’re doing something about the litter problem, it takes seconds to pick up rubbish and you feel good about doing it.

“Only footprints should be left on the sand!”