Call to Action from Newbiggin Environment Network

🚨 CALL TO ACTION FROM NEWBIGGIN ENVIRONMENT NETWORK: Help Clear Nurdles from Newbiggin Bay! 🚨

You may have heard about the recent environmental incident at the Port of Tyne on July 19th, where the vessel Wind Orca collided with the BG Orange. The impact damaged shipping containers, spilling up to 25 tonnes—an estimated 1 billion tiny plastic pellets (nurdles)—into our waters. These lentil-sized raw plastic manufacturing pellets float and travel rapidly with wind and tide.

These are have now been detected along Newbiggin Bay beach. While these pellets are non-toxic to touch, they pose a serious threat to marine life, fish, and seabirds who misidentify them as food. Volunteers are working hard to clear them before they get washed back out to sea or swallowed by wildlife!

For more information head towards Newbiggin Environment Network Facebook Group –https://www.facebook.com/groups/264936659475714/

🌊 CLEAN-UP SCHEDULE (Post-High Tide Windows)
The absolute best time to clear nurdles is just after high tide along the tide line before the next tide washes them out.

🌊Wed 29th: 6:00 AM – 10:00 AM & 4:45 PM – 9:00 PM
🌊Thu 30th: 6:00 AM – 10:00 AM & 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM
🌊Fri 31st: 6:00 AM – 10:00 AM & 6:15 PM – 9:30 PM
🌊Sat 1st: 6:00 AM – 10:00 AM & 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM

🧹 WHAT TO BRING & BEST TECHNIQUES
Sandy Areas: Large brushes, dustpan & brush sets, mesh bags/sieves, heavy-duty bin bags, and gloves.

Rocky Beaches: Garden forks (to gently lift seaweed patches), dustpans, brushes, and sieves.

⚠️ Golden Rule: Watch your step! Avoid stepping on or trampling nurdles into the sand, as this buries them and makes recovery much harder.

Dog Owners: Keep dogs on leads while accessing areas on the beach outside of dog ban.

📦 WHAT TO DO WITH WHAT YOU COLLECT & EVIDENCING
Bag & Label: Place collected waste in bags and leave them next to local council bins. Mark bags clearly as ‘Volunteer Collections’.

Take Photos (Crucial!): Photos are needed for official evidence and damage tracking. Please upload your photos to the ‘Photos Only’ section or local chat thread in the group.

👥 HOW TO GET INVOLVED
This is pure grassroots people power in action! You don’t need to wait for instructions—if you have free time during the post-high-tide slots, head down and start sifting.

𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘀—𝗱𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻! 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲.💙

📱 Join the WhatsApp Group: Join Newbiggin Volunteers Here – https://tinyurl.com/Join-Newbiggin-Volunteers-Here

📖 Read the FAQ & Clean up Guide: Check out the Nurdle Hub NE Clean up Guide before heading out – https://tinyurl.com/Nurdle-Beach-Cleanup-Guidance

📰 Local News Reference: Read the BBC News Article for background context – https://tinyurl.com/2waaf4e7