From Beach to Bench: DCW Polymers transforms beach clean litter into recycled plastic bench for Kenn C of E Primary School
Year five and six pupils from Kenn C of E Primary School collected over several bags of litter during a beach clean which will now be transformed into a recycled plastic bench for their playground.
DCW Polymers partnered with Keep Britain Tidy’s Ocean Recovery Project, supported by South West Water, to organise the beach clean in Exmouth. The clean was set-up to give local school children a valuable lesson in recycling and the dangers plastic litter can have on the coastal landscape and its wildlife.
After a short talk on safety and ocean plastic by Ocean Recovery Project Manager Neil Hembrow, the children grabbed their beach cleaning kits and set off to collect as much litter as possible from Exmouth’s famous golden sands.
By lunchtime, the young environmentalists had collected several bags of litter from the popular East Devon beach which welcomes thousands of visitors every year. Helping the pupils understand the value of a circular loop when it comes to waste, DCW Polymers has taken the collection to its specialist plastics reprocessing plant in Exeter.
Over 20kgs of marine plastic waste, which includes the children’s collection, will go into the making of a DCW Polymers’ recycled bench alongside other recycled plastic waste. The material will be shredded into granules and melted and moulded into posts and planks to create the Torbay bench style. This backless contemporary bench will be donated by the Ocean Recovery Project and DCW Polymers to Kenn C of E Primary School as a thank you for the pupils’ hard work in cleaning up their local coastline.
Neil Hembrow, Ocean Recovery Project Manager, commented: “It was a pleasure to partner with DCW Polymers to invite the children of Kenn C of E Primary School on a beach clean. We started our recycling adventures with DCW Polymers over seven years ago and it’s fantastic to be involved in a new innovative project that gives back to the community.
“Exmouth is one of the most popular beaches in our region thanks to miles of golden sand and its glistening waters, perfect for swimming and a whole host of watersports. It’s wonderful that the children were so enthusiastic about helping us clean up the beach and learn about the circular economy.
“I was very impressed with their positive attitude and enthusiasm for the task ahead. It’s this generation that can have a huge positive impact on our planet. We hope the children enjoy their new recycled plastic bench!”
DCW Polymers has a historic link with Kenn C of E Primary School as the Managing Director’s daughters both attended the primary school. DCW Polymers hope to partner with even more schools in the future to clean up the South West’s coastline.
Jason Goozee, Head of DCW Polymers, commented: “As a Zero to Landfill recycling company which strives to encourage others to protect the environment in which they live and operate in, it’s important to us to participate in community projects like this one. Educating and inspiring the next generation is the key to ensuring our environment doesn’t suffer any more damage in the years to come.
“We were keen to use the plastic waste the children collected in the making of one of our Torbay benches to show the pupils how waste can be given a new lease of life. The potential waste has is incredible and that’s what we aim to prove, diverting as much waste away from landfill as we possibly can and turning it into new products.”
DCW Polymers, leading South West plastics recycling and reprocessing plant, partnered with Keep Britain Tidy’s Ocean Recovery Project to run this beach clean. Launched by Keep Britain Tidy, the Ocean Recovery Project was launched to help volunteer groups to recycle beach litter after it completed 1,200 beach cleans of its own. To date, the Project has recycled over 60 tonnes of material from the South West.
For more information on the Ocean Recovery Project, visit www.keepbritaintidy.org and for more information on DCW Polymers, including its recycled furniture range, visit www.dcwpolymers.co.uk or call 01392 535353.
