Bottlenose dolphins leaping at Cardigan Bay
Common dolphins by Lyndon Lomax
The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales cover half of Wales’ coastline. Our marine team, who are based at Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre in New Quay, work tirelessly to ensure that our marine wildlife is protected, free from plastic and awareness is raised about the issues that it currently faces.
Unfortunately, our seas are in trouble and we desperately need your help, and the help of your friends and family, to reduce the number of plastics that are dumped into the ocean every day!
Sadly it is estimated that there will be more pieces of plastic in the ocean by 2020 than fish!
Research has shown that some 90% of seabirds consume plastic which becomes lodged in their stomachs disrupting feeding, the plastic particles can also release toxic chemicals into their bodies. Animals can also become entangled in plastic debris, discarded or lost fishing gear.
The great news is that as a nation we have started to take responsibility for this and have begun charging for plastic bags and have banned the use of microplastics in cosmetics and cleaning product, but we all need to be the change that you want to see in the world.
By making little changes to your daily life, you can help reduce your plastic waste.
Here are 5 easy steps you can follow to help reduce your plastic waste:
- Use reusable water bottles
- Use jute or cotton bags
- Say no to plastic straws, use paper or steel straws
- Use a reusable coffee mug
- Buy loose fruit and vegetables
The biggest way we can all make an impact is to share what we’ve learnt so that others can follow in our footsteps. So please spread the word about what each and every one of us can be doing to help minimise plastic waste, for the sake of our marine life.
Don’t forget to check products in your house don’t contain microplastics (look for polyethylene (PE), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), nylon polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polypropylene (PP) on the labels. You can also contact your local supermarkets and ask them to reduce the amount of plastic packaging they use.
Please spread the word and help us raise awareness for the ways in which everyone can help make our oceans cleaner and protect marine wildlife for the future.
Find out more about our marine conservation work and volunteering with us