Stagecoach South West take part in local Beach Clean hosted by Visit South Devon

Last week the team at Stagecoach South West joined our partners Visit South Devon in their first Beach Clean at Blackpool Sands. The event was held in collaboration with the 2 Minute Foundation, an amazing locally based charity who’s work sets out to show that simple acts can lead to a big difference. Their aim is to see a world without plastic litter and pollution, and to inspire others to change the way they interact with outdoor spaces.

On Thursday 14^th September we joined a host of other local business’ to take part in a fantastic beach clean on the stunning Blackpool sands. We caught the early morning Stagecoach Service 3 from Royal Parade in Plymouth, which on arrival in Kingsbridge continues as Service 93 toward Dartmouth. The bus stops on the main road by the beach carpark having taken in the most stunning views on this spectacular scenic journey.

The day proved to be a thought provoking experiencing, highlighting the things we can all do in our personal and work life to reduce our impact on the environment. We were taken aback by how much we managed to find during the clean. At first glance the beach appeared spotless, however, once we started to look closer; there were hundreds of pieces of micro plastic and debris which had been washed up from the ocean onto shore.

As well as being a great thing to do for the environment the clean itself was very therapeutic. Spending time in nature and having the opportunity to give back was a truly fantastic experience.

The lovely Claire Giner from the 2 minute foundation encouraged us all to take a minute to actually think about how many plastic items we use in our homes. Then to take another minute to think about how we can swap these for eco-friendlier alternatives. 

The Foundation’s message is simple, but powerful; it only takes 2 minutes to make a change. Things such as swapping a plastic toothbrush for a bamboo one is an easy fix. Businesses could think about ways to encourage employees to be more green; such as implementing a sustainable travel plan. Contact our Stagecoach solutions team to find out more about corporate schemes in the South West.

Jo Butler at Visit south Devon said; ‘The workshop has given us some great ideas how to make small changes to make a difference personally and as a business.  At Visit South Devon we strive to be environmentally friendly, as well as promoting sustainable tourism and working towards our very own Sustainability Pledge.’

The Stagecoach sustainability strategy is our vision to help create a greener, smarter, safer, healthier and fairer country by leveraging our power to connect communities sustainably and achieve our collective economic, social and environmental objectives.

We want to build on the progress we’ve made in recent years on tackling climate change, becoming more energy efficient, reducing waste and conserving water.