Volunteers battle to clear West Country beaches of plastics following storms

Storms Ciara and Dennis have wreaked havoc on homes, businesses, roads and schools, but they have also left their mark on the coastline.

The seas, which are so full of plastic waste, have coughed up their toxic bounty onto Devon and Cornwall's beaches.

Teams of volunteers have been out in force, daily, trying to clear up the mess.

All the the flotsam and jetsam has either been tossed ashore or been unearthed by constantly shifting sands.

Tiny pieces of plastic, previously buried and hidden beneath the beach surface or settled on the ocean floor, have now been exposed.

But the process of collecting these micro plastics has been fraught with difficulty.

Powerful waves have been sweeping much of it back out to sea before human hands can gather it up.

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Some of the larger, uglier, plastic items remain.

Like these coiled pipes, found on Westward Ho!, which have been traced to a container that came off a cargo ship during the storms.

East Devon District Council has underlined the importance of local authorities and people working together to clean the beaches.

WILDLIFE HAS BEEN BADLY AFFECTED TOO

The churned-up micro plastics are not only a blight on the region's beaches but they also harm the region's birds and mammals.

The Cornish Seal Sanctuary is concerned that already vulnerable, orphaned pups could swallow it when they are released back into the wild.

The storms have wrenched several young seals from their mothers and washed them up on the beach before the pups have been weaned off their milk.

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