Nipping pollution in the 'butt'

PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - Plettenberg Bay locals are nipping what is deemed the most littered item in the world in the "butt" with a simple and hopefully effective idea.

"By now it's no secret that plastic waste in our oceans is a global epidemic. When some of it washes ashore – plastic bottles, plastic bags, food wrappers – we get a stark reminder. And lately one part of this problem has been most glaring to volunteers who comb beaches picking up trash: cigarette butts," said Keep Plett Clean's Alison Bryant.

Therefore they have launched what has been dubbed "Bin your Butt".

The campaign was launched on Plett's Central Beach on Wednesday.

It involves placing special bins, in the shape of a giant cigarette, on the town's beaches. "Each unit should hold about 2 500 butts and Keep Plett Clean will handle the emptying of the bins."

Bryant said they are starting with 50 units due to time constraints and would install them on Central Beach, Robberg 5, The Wreck and wherever else they can for now. "In the New Year, we will expand to all other beaches, lagoons and Nature's Valley.

"We are aware not everyone will use these bins, but it will bring awareness to this big problem on our beaches and hopefully beachgoers and smokers will also pick up and dispose butts into our receptacles."

The units have a spike that goes into the sand, with a pipe that fits over it and is secured with a pin.

Bryant explained that local businessman Duncan Brown from Beacon Isle KwikSpar designed the units and paid for the manufacturing of them, and Buco Plettenberg Bay and Nic Bryant supplied them with 50 1m pipes that form the centre part of the "cigarette".

"The idea was born when local Kath de Kock kept asking Duncan if there was something he could do to help with the cigarette butts on the beach, which is how it all began," she said.

The campaign aims to reduce cigarette butt pollution.