Every Year Spring brings Orkney folk out to the road verges, loch sides and beaches to take part in Bag the Bruck. Tonnes of litter, mainly plastic is collected by volunteers and disposed of safely by Orkney Islands Council. Large items of litter are easy to spot, especially on our beaches where the plastic and rope stands out against the sandy shore.
What is much more difficult to see are the tiny pellets of plastic known as nurdles. These have become an increasing problem on the UK’s shores,however, many have not yet been discovered on Orkney. Maybe we have not been looking? Would you know how to spot one?
What are nurdles?
Nurdles are tiny pellets of plastic about the size of a lentil. They come in lots of different colours. So very easy to pass by as you stroll along the beach.
Nurdles are used in the plastic industry where they are welded together to make a huge variety of products. There have been some large spills of them and these are well reported. This occurs when a large shipping container is lost at sea and the contents of nurdles spill out.
What is not reported and is, therefore,impossible to quantify are the accidental spillages which occur on land. This is where packaging comes loose, holes in skips let out not just rainwater, vacuum systems are not fully sealed and acts of vandalism damage otherwise secure containers.
Many spillages can be cleaned up but on uneven surfaces or with the action of the wind and rain, many are washed away eventually making their journey into our seas.
Nurdles attract toxins
Nurdles are so tiny that marine animals and sea birds consume them in the belief they are food. They are so small that this is affecting shellfish such as mussels and eventually through the food chain will end up in other animals. The nurdles, themselves, attract toxic pollutants which become concentrated around them. This poison feeds into marine life. And remember many of us eat fish too.
“While our knowledge on the impacts on the environment and human health, and the costs associated with these impacts, is far from complete what we do know is that the more we find out, the worse things seem.”Fidra
The British Plastics Federation (BPF) reports the following key figures on the UK Plastics Industry:
- 6,200 companies in the plastics industry;
- 5,200 manufacturers of plastic products;
- 1.7m tonnes of material produced (from UK-based polymer suppliers);
- 3.3m tonnes of plastic material processed at plastic converters; and
- £23.5 billion plastic industry turnover.
What can be done? Join The Nurdle Hunt
The Great Global Nurdle Hunt is taking place between 13th to 22nd of March in 2020.
During one week in March, people are being asked to get out and search for nurdles. By combining international efforts, it is hoped to show the public, governments and industry that tackling this widespread issue is of utmost importance.
Taking part will provide valuable data proving that irresponsible pellet handling practices cause huge impacts across the globe.
Doing this will help put pressure on those responsible so that future pellets do not end up in our rivers, seas or oceans.
How to take part…
Here’s what you can do now to get ready for taking part from Fidra:
1. Visit the event page
Head over to the event page to find out more details on when, how and where to take part.
2. Register your interest
Add your details by completing the register of interest form. This will help track how many people and organisations plan to take part. It will also help to keep you up to date with the event.
3. Share the event with your friends, colleagues and contacts
Do you have friends in far flung places? Last year Nurdle Hunts took place in 34 countries across all 7 continents (including Antarctica!). Can this record be broken in 2020?
Help spread the word, let others know you are going to be taking part and encourage more people to sign up to the worldwide nurdling network. Use the hashtag #NurdleHunt
Can’t wait? Head out for a nurdle hunt now and submit your findings online.
You can take part whenever and wherever, so you don’t need to wait for March. Here are some useful documents to help you out:
Tips to hunt – This includes an idea of equipment you might need and where to look to find those nurdles.
ID Chart (with recording form) – This will help you identify what you find.
As reported by the Marine Conservation Society, a recent study by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimated that there were 46,000 pieces of plastic litter per square mile in the sea.
In 1992 twenty containers full of plastic ducks and other toys were lost overboard from a ship travelling from China to Seattle. By 1994 some of the toys had been tracked to Alaska, others reached Iceland in 2000. The toys have now been sighted in the Arctic, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Nurdles also float around in the sea and are driven around via currents. In the South of England thousands of nurdles have been found on the beaches. In Orkney, these tiny plastic particles are there, maybe not yet in large numbers, but they can be found. And they are in the food chain.
Reporter: Fiona Grahame