Advice

Mechanical cleaning

If there is currently no possibility to reassess the way beaches are cleaned, there is no other option than to keep the current way. Even though mechanical cleaning has a big effect on the environment and the ecosystems that are in it. We get that it can be difficult to change the way things are done, also budget-wise. However if the situation changes or the possibility for change opens up in the future, we recommend taking the decision tree again, to consider other options.

A little improvement could be in the way the beach is mechanically cleaned. Sifting is more damaging to the environment than for example raking. When sifting lots of meiofauna is also taken out of the soil, which happens less when raking is implemented. A disadvantage of raking is that smaller waste, like cigarette butts, is also not taken up by the machine. Another option could be using wider sifts, so the smaller meiofauna remains in the sand. However again smaller waste, like plastic shards and cigarette butts will also stay behind.