Unusual beach finds show scale of pollution problem
Cleaning up our coastline has never been more important. Our list of the top 20 most unusual things found on the beaches we care for shows the scope of the challenge with rubbish coming from as far afield as Canada, Saudi Arabia and the Caribbean.
Some of the items discovered are decades old, including a ‘Claws’ crisp packet from 1976 and a bottle of rum from post-Prohibition America, both found at Formby, Liverpool.
A council bin travelled 70 miles along the River Nene to Blakeney Point, a peaceful coastal spot known for its population of grey seals. And a cargo lost at sea in 1994 means that thousands of pieces of nautical-themed Lego have been arriving on beaches ever since.
Phil Dyke, Coastal Specialist at the National Trust, said: 'As weird and wonderful as these items are, they tell a more serious story about the permanent nature of plastic, and the constant deluge of marine waste and litter arriving on our shores.'