Alarming results from the “Clean Coast 2019”
clean-up campaign
On Saturday, 21 September 2019, the tenth edition of the “Clean Coast” clean-up campaign took place, organised by the Slovenian Water Institute in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning and the TRI-NITI Institute.
The event brought together 240 volunteers who had travelled from all corners of Slovenia and abroad. The volunteers cleaned beaches and lakeshores at Lazaret, Debeli Rtič, Ankaran, Koper, Izola, Strunjan, Fiesa, Seča and along the River Rižana.
This year, we collected 588 kg or 39,103 items of litter (in 2018, we collected 566 kg or 25,712 items of litter). Of this, we collected 20,509 cigarette ends in just two hours this year; these are also the most common type of litter found on the coast.
Figure 1: Cigarette ends (photo: Mitja Klodič)
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Link to the Report on the Results of the 2019 Clean-up Campaign
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This year’s Clean Coast campaign took place under the slogan “DOING MORE WITH LESS”, as we wanted to highlight that changing our habits is key to a clean environment. In collaboration with the Komunala Izola Reuse Centre, we organised a “Swap Shop” and invited volunteers to bring along items they no longer use.
Figure 2: Swap shop (photo: Mitja Klodič)
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We also presented examples of sustainable practices, ran various workshops and hosted a photography exhibition by Rok Dolničar, whilst a group from Koper Grammar School created an octopus sculpture from waste materials, which serves as a vivid reminder of the dangers of marine litter (Figure 5). With this programme, which follows on from the annual clean-up, we aim to bring people together and, above all, to encourage all participants to recognise that the time for change has come. This year’s campaign was also the centrepiece of Mediterranean Coast Week.
Figure 3: 588 kg of litter collected in two hours (photo: Mitja Klodič)
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We would like to thank all the volunteers and other participants who have been supporting ‘Clean Coast’ for many years. Among them are: DRSV, UPRS, the municipalities of Ankaran, Koper, Izola and Piran, Koper Grammar School, Terme Krka Strunjan, the Izola Centre for Reusable Items, Strunjan Landscape Park, the Erato dance studio, Rok Dolničar, Žiga Miklavc, the Morigenos association, Rifuzl, Pralne pleničke and many others.