Cleaning one million miles of the UK

Surfers Against Sewage have launched a new campaign called the 'Million Mile Beach Clean'.

The charity wants people to clean up litter from their local beach, street or green space and hope that a million miles will cleaned up by the end of 2021.

They say it will help oceans, beaches and wildlife as well as give people who are getting outdoors to take part a boost to their mental health and physical wellbeing.

A huge sand drawing of a seal surrounded by litter has been created on Cayton Bay, Yorkshire, to mark the start of the campaign and remind people of how pollution affects wildlife.

Surfers Against Sewage did some research on the topic and found that over half of people in the UK think COVID-19 has led to more plastic pollution, with almost two-thirds of people saying they have seen more waste in their area over the last 12 months.

This rise could be down to people buying more single-use items during the pandemic, like disposable facemasks instead of reusable ones.

The charity also found that most people spot over 10 pieces of plastic or litter on their walks.