Operation NURDLE in Plettenberg Bay

Nature's Valley Trust (NVT), in collaboration with Plett Tourism, are spearheading a new initiative. In a nutshell, nurdles, tiny plastic pellets, pose a very real danger to the environment and the animals that inhabit this beautiful part of the coastline. Following the recent spill in Durban harbour, NVT is receiving more and more information about these nurdles being spotted on various beaches in the Greater Plettenberg Bay area. The danger becomes progressively worse as these plastic pellets enter the food chain.  

To assist with creating further awareness, NVT and Plett Tourism have organised a Nurdle Hunt Competition which started on the 15th of January and ends the 16th of February 2018. The idea is to bring together all those who love the area and wish to give nature a helping hand. Due to the high environmental impact it is important to stem this problem now. Locals and visitors who wish to get involved, can participate in the clean-up from Robberg, all the way to Nature's Valley. As much as this is a coastal clean-up initiative, the collected nurdles will also assist NVT researchers in assessing the full extent of the nurdle disaster in our area. This data will be a good indication and guide the clean-up operations taking place in the next couple of months.

For this purpose of this competition, the coastline has been split up into six zones:

1. Nature’s Valley
2. Keurboomstrand 1 (Keurbooms Estuary mouth to Enricos)
3. Keurboomstrand 2 (Enricos to Grootbank)
4. Lookout and Central Beach
5. Beacon Isle Hotel to Wreck Beach
6. Robberg Nature Reserve Island beach

Entrants will be allowed one entry per zone but may collect from as many zones as they like. For research purposes, we ask that they keep nurdles from different zones in different containers. Some great prizes are on offer to the individuals/teams that bring in the most nurdles. Winners will be announced on Facebook and contacted on the 22^nd of February 2018.

To their knowledge, NVT is not aware of similar initiative being launched elsewhere. The South African Association for Marine Biological Research (SAAMBR) have launched drop-off points where people can drop off the nurdles they collect and these locations include Plett Tourism and the Nature's Valley Trust Office. For more drop-off points visit: https://www.saambr.org.za/the-nurdle-hurdle/. Let’s come together and jump the Nurdle Hurdle together! #SayNoToNurdles

Visit www.pletttourism.com, follow us on FB

or phone +27 (0)44 533 4065 for more information

ABOUT NATURE’S VALLEY TRUST: Nature’s Valley Trust is a small community driven NPO working at the cutting edge of integrated conservation in South Africa. We operate in four main arenas, namely Conservation, Education, Community and Research.

Nestled in the magnificent Garden Route, and situated in world renowned Nature’s Valley, we are a passionate group of conservationists that aim to make a practical difference with the work we do. For more information contact Dr Mark Brown, Programme Director, Nature’s Valley Trust, www.naturesvalleytrust.co.za.