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We have won £2k from Tesco Bags of Help!

LOVEmyBEACH is delighted to announce it has bagged £2,000 from Tesco’s Bags of Help community grant scheme.

Bags of Help is run in partnership with environmental charity Groundwork, and sees grants awarded to thousands of local community projects every year. Since launching in 2015, it’s provided more than £79 million to over 26,000 local community projects.

Millions of shoppers have voted in Tesco stores up and down the country and it can now be revealed LOVEmyBEACH has been awarded £2,000.

Work will now begin on bringing the project to life!

Our 2 Minute Beach Clean Boards are free-standing A-boards that provide litter pickers and bags for people walking by so that they can pick some litter for a few minutes before carrying on with their day.

Zephie Begolo, Campaign Manager for LOVEmyBEACH commented: “We are thrilled to receive this grant from Tesco Bags of Help and are very grateful to everyone who voted for us. This award will pay for four new beach clean boards, which means less litter and cleaner beaches along the Fylde Coast.

“The great thing about the boards is that it makes litter picking easy. We can all play our part in keeping our beaches clean and safe, even if it’s only taking two minutes out of your day. This grant will make a big difference to the coastline and will encourage people to take their litter home with them.”

Voting ran in stores throughout May and June with customers choosing which local project they would like to get the top award using a token given to them at the checkout.

Tesco customers get the chance to vote for three different groups each time they shop. Every other month, when votes are collected, three groups in each of Tesco’s regions are awarded funding.

Alec Brown, Tesco’s Head of Community, said: “Bags of Help contributes funds to community projects up and down the country and we’ve been overwhelmed by the response from customers voting in their local stores. We’re looking forward to seeing more projects brought to life.”

Groundwork’s National Chief Executive, Graham Duxbury, said: “Bags of Help continues to enable local communities up and down Britain to improve the local spaces and places that matter to them. The diversity of projects that are being funded shows that local communities have a passion to create something great in their area. We are pleased to be able to be a part of the journey and provide support and encouragement to help local communities thrive.”

In addition, to mark Tesco’s 100th year, they have announced two special voting rounds, Tesco Bags of Help Centenary Grants, taking place in store now with larger grant amounts available over wider geographic regions. Please look online for more information on if they can support your group either through the normal Bags of Help vote or Tesco Bags of Help Centenary Grants and don’t forget to vote in store!

To find out more visit www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp.

Show Water Some Love!

Water is the stuff of life, but how often do any of us really think about it?

That’s all set to change this month with the launch of the Love Water campaign on 31st July.

The campaign is led by a coalition of over 40 organisations including LOVEmyBEACH, the Environment Agency, Water UK, National Farmer’s Union (NFU), World Wildlife Fund (WWF), water companies and others. We are proud to be supporting this campaign which aims to connect people to water to ensure we all value this precious resource.

The Love Water campaign focuses on three key themes:
• encouraging people to use water wisely
• helping people to understand how they can reduce pollution in their local environment
• encouraging people to get out and enjoy their local water environment

Clean and plentiful water is a government priority with a clear ambition set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan.

Zephie Begolo, Campaign Manager for LOVEmyBEACH said: “We are really excited to be working with the LoveWater coalition. Working together means we will be able to do a better job of protecting our oceans, rivers and lakes, keeping them clean and safe and making sure there is enough to go round.

“We can all make a difference to water quality in our daily lives, whether it’s only flushing the 3 P’s (pee, poop and paper), picking up after our dog, or not disposing of fats, oils and greases down the drain. We all have a part to play and we can all #ShowWaterSomeLove!”

Love Water aims to give everyone the knowledge they need to make the right decisions for them and for the environment. It will make us think about those seemingly innocuous actions we take that can have damaging consequences for the water environment. Actions such as flushing wet wipes down the loo, tipping waste liquids down roadside drains, washing greasy pans in the sink which all affect water quality, or leaving the tap running while brushing your teeth, wasting up to 12 litres of water.
It’s time we all took action.

Together we can show water some love and keep our rivers, lakes and seas clean and healthy, and make sure we keep our water supplies flowing.

Follow the campaign on Twitter @LoveWaterUK

Get active on the beach this summer!

This summer, people across the North West are being invited to get down to the coast as an exciting programme of events is launched to get people active on the beach to improve their health and well-being.

The Active Coast programme will launch in the week commencing 22^nd July, when local authorities across the North West coast will be showcasing a diverse range of activities that cater for everyone, no matter your age, ability or interests.

Research shows that getting out, connecting with your natural environment and being active regularly can have multiple health benefits, from losing weight to improving heart function and relieving anxiety and depression.

Our beaches are a fantastic, but underused resource that can help us keep healthy in body and mind. They are free and easy to access and can be used for almost everything, from a high intensity run, team sports or even a stroll or meditation. Everyone can use our beautiful beaches which are now the cleanest and safest they have been in decades.

This year, the Active Coast programme seeks to appeal to more people and includes a broader range of activities that fall into five categories: sports; environment; community action; walk and relaxation and arts and culture. There is something for everyone on our coast and we hope that people will be inspired to use our beaches more.

Some of the activities residents can expect this year include brand new Cycle Rides in Wyre; a series of beach activities in Fylde featuring volleyball, rounders and football; the Flowers and Butterflies of Walney walk; a taster Fun Sail in Morecambe and much more!

More information on planned activities will be available on lovemybeach.org where we will be launching a new section of our website!

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Water quality

The Environment Agency monitors bathing waters – stretches of sea or lake where many people swim and paddle – to assess whether they meet the strict standards of the European Bathing Water Directive. The standards are set to protect public health and the environment from pollution.

The Environment Agency takes 20 water samples at each bathing water between May and September each year and post the information online: http://environment.data.gov.uk/bwq/profiles/

The samples are tested for certain types of bacteria: escherichia coli (E.coli) and intestinal enterococci, which are not directly harmful but indicate the presence of pollution. The bacteria are found in the intestines of animals and humans and pass through the body in poo. High levels of bacteria = poor water quality.

However, the water may be cleaner on the actual day you visit the beach, as the quality can change, particularly after heavy rain washes pollution into rivers and the sea. Look out for daily forecasts at some beaches.

Each beach is also given an annual classification. From 2015 this is based on sample results over the previous four years, e.g. 2015 results use data from 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. 2016 results use data from 2013 to 2016 and so on. The classifications are:

Excellent

The standard is the highest, cleanest class

Good

Generally good water quality

Sufficient

The water meets the minimum standards

Poor

Bathing is not advised at this beach as water quality has not met sufficient standards

If a bathing water is classed as Poor, you are advised not to bathe because samples taken over the previous four years have been affected by pollution. This does not mean the beach is closed – you can still enjoy everything the beach has to offer.

If a water sample has high levels of bacteria, analysis is done to estimate* the sources of pollution and work is planned in the area to improve water quality. When this work is significant and is expected to help improve bathing water quality, the four years of data for the annual classification starts from the time the work is completed and sample data from before the work are not included. This is called step change.

*Estimates are based on computer modelling, DNA analysis, and knowledge of the local area. The estimates can never be perfect because pollution to bathing waters changes from day to day depending on the season, the tides and the weather.