Dozens of locals from Tywyn and the surrounding area braved the heavy fog and winds to take part in the Tywyn Beach Guardians‘ very first beach clean on Sunday, January 28th 2018.
Following a brief Health and Safety talk by Aled Lewis from Tywyn Town Council at the end of Neptune Road at 10 a.m., the eager beach cleaners – including town councillors Marisa O’Hara and Quentin Deakin – dispersed along the beach. Some focused on the prom and the dunes whilst others went further afield, tackling the stretch leading to Aberdyfi.
In total, enough rubbish was collected to fill two large skips near Penllyn Farm and the Neptune, which were provided by the Tywyn Town Council and Alun Wyn Evans and then collected by Gwynedd Council.
The most commonly found types of debris were plastic bottle caps, drinking straws, fishing rope and tiny pieces of broken-down plastic but many large items were also uncovered such as shoes and crates.
Michelle Bain and Victoria Lane, who originally came up with the idea for the clean-up, were astounded at how many people turned up.
“On a cold damp Sunday morning, we were in truth not expecting a good turn out,” said Michelle. “But we estimated that we had between 50 and 60 adults and children. It was uplifting and emotional to see that so many were so passionate about keeping our beach clean.”
“It was only ever meant to be a relaxed informal get-together with like-minded people,” said Victoria. “We didn’t want to put pressure on anybody. It was a case of set a date and even if it’s just the two of us, it doesn’t matter. So today, when over 50 pitched up, it was a fantastic sight.”
The date and time for the next beach clean is Sunday, February 25th 2018 at 10:30 a.m. Updates will be provided on the Tywyn Beach Guardians Facebook page. Stay tuned!
Tywyn Beach Guardians is grateful for the support of the Tywyn Town Council and council chairman Alun Wyn Evans for enabling us to have a central collection point.