James Duddridge, the Member of Parliament for Rochford and Southend East, joined a team of volunteers on Saturday (8th June) as part of a 12-hour marathon beach clean-up.
James was supporting Southend Beachcare who had organised the event along with Surfers Against Sewage to celebrate World Oceans Day.
In its second year, the annual clean-up saw a total of 90 volunteers collectively remove litter from seven beaches along the Estuary between 8am and 8pm. In total, 16 bags of rubbish and two bags of recycling were collected across the day.
James was able to lend a hand by assisting volunteers on a blustery Shoebury Common. Speaking afterwards, the MP said:
“It was great to support the beach clean-up in Shoebury on Saturday and meet lots of people who care passionately about the environment and where they live.
"We are very lucky to have a beautiful coastline in Southend, but litter has no place on our beaches and it’s important we all do what we can to protect our marine environments. Disposing of litter irresponsibly is not only an eyesore for visitors, but it also poses a threat to our wildlife.
“Well done to the organisers and everybody who gave up some of their valuable spare time to help make our beaches cleaner.”
The Southend BeachCare Group runs litter picking events throughout the year. You can find out more about the next event on their Facebook page.
