Record-breaking clean-up effort at popular Peterhead Beach

SSEN Transmission_32 volunteers from EGL2 project teams helped clear-up picturesque Sandford Bay.jpg

  • Over 25 tonnes of rubbish removed from Sandford Bay by Eastern Green Link 2 project team in first annual beach clean

Over 25 tonnes of rubbish has been removed from a popular beach near Peterhead in a record-breaking effort to clean up the area by volunteers working on the development of the Eastern Green Link 2 subsea electricity cable project.   

The record-breaking amount of litter collected – which is roughly the same weight as four African elephants – was removed from the sandy shores of Sandford Bay in Peterhead by a team of 32 volunteers from across SSEN Transmission, Keltbray and David Smith Contractors.   

Sandford Bay lies just south of Peterhead and marks the spot where the planned 436km high voltage direct current (HVDC) subsea transmission cable – the longest in the UK – will run to Drax in North Yorkshire.   

The team were keen to roll up their sleeves and swap their usual tools for litter picks and bin bags in a bid to clear-up the popular beach and help keep the picturesque seaside setting litter-free.  

Over the course of a single day, the team cleared away enough litter to completely fill 30 construction bags and two skips – including removing car tyres, fishing nets and ropes from the shores. Between them they walked and litter-picked throughout the day, covering a 600m stretch along the shore. The rubbish was collected by specialist vehicles the following day.   

The beach clean was part of an initiative led by not-for-profit partner East Grampian Coastal Partnership, who had teamed up with the EGL2 team as part of their Turning The Plastic Tide project.  The initiative involves coordinating beach cleans along the Grampian coastline between Fraserburgh and St Cyrus, working together to ensure they can be carried out safely and effectively, and targeting any particular litter hot spots.   

The organisation outlined that the amount of rubbish collected broke the Turning The Plastic Tide project record for the most collected in one day.    

Ricky Saez, Project Director for Eastern Green Link 2, said:

“Sandford Bay marks the spot where our future subsea cable between Peterhead and Drax will come ashore and into our new converter station at Peterhead.  

“As guests in the area, it is really important to us that we try and leave a positive impact on the community, so when we heard about the Turning the Plastic Tide campaign we reached out to see how we could get involved. We’ve decided to turn the beach clean into an annual event with our teams throughout the project’s lifetime, making sure we continue to offer our support to this brilliant initiative.   

“For our first annual clean we managed to shift over 25 tonnes of litter and fishing debris from the shores - which we’re told is a new record for the Turning the Tide Campaign – and we’re pleased we’ve been able to make such a difference.

“Although it’s sad to see how much litter the teams had to clear, I think everyone involved found the experience rewarding and resulting in a noticeable improvement in the area. We look forward to continuing to support as the EGL2 project progresses.”  

Dr Lauren Smith, Turning The Plastic Tide Manager, said:  

"A huge well done to volunteers from the SSEN Transmission team, who, supported by Keltbray, removed a phenomenal 25.5 tonnes of rubbish from Sandford Bay last week! The bay was in desperate need of a clean-up and so their help has been fantastic.   

“Sandford Bay is a known litter sink, and it is hugely beneficial to get this amount removed from the environment with a big team effort. Volunteers worked all day and by the end the visual impact was striking.  

“A big thank you also to local resident Ian McIver who works tirelessly trying to keep on top of some of the rubbish, not an easy task by any means!"  

Phil Roberts, Head of Transmission at Keltbray, said: 

“We are delighted to contribute to the Sandford Bay clean up working with SSEN Transmission and David Smith Contractors. Leaving a positive impact on all of the communities in which we operate is very important to Keltbray and is a core value of our organisation. We hope that this clean up will allow local residents to enjoy the new cleaner environment in the bay”