From planting seaweed to spotting seals: how to help look after the UK’s coastline

Find a project…

Get your hands on some slimy stuff with the year-long Big Seaweed Search and help monitor the biodiversity of seaweed along the UK coast, a key indicator of ocean health. Simply download the seaweed guide and registration forms and submit your results to
bigseaweedsearch.org.

If tackling plastic pollution is your thing, you can join beach cleaners around the world to collect and record plastic particles with the Great Nurdle Hunt (nurdlehunt.org.uk); or help the University of Portsmouth collect data on pollution in its Big Microplastic Survey (microplasticsurvey.org); Alternatively, find a coastal cleanup near you through the Marine Conservation Society’s database (mcsuk.org).

For divers and hobby divers, citizen science project Seasearch offers free training to help divers identify and record what they see underwater, contributing to a national effort to track the UK’s marine biodiversity at seasearch.org.uk.

Seagrass meadows themselves are powerful centers of biodiversity and sequester tons of carbon as well; you can join the movement to help restore the UK’s wild meadows with Seawildling Scotland, which welcomes volunteers to help plant and monitor wild meadows at Loch Craignish (seawilding.org).

The Wild Oyster Project is trying to restore the UK’s once great sea reefs and invites volunteers, schools and family groups to visit its restoration sites in England, Scotland and Wales, where you can pitch in to help small rock storage
(wild-oysters.org).

Keen rock companions, check out The Rockpool Project, choose one of three survey guides and record your finds at more than 70 coastal sites across the UK (therockpoolproject.co.uk).

Surfers Against Sewage has created the Ocean School, aimed at young outdoor enthusiasts, with a range of free resources, classes and activities to get children engaged with the sea.
(sas.org.uk).

Turn your coastal views into citizen science by helping to monitor seabirds with the British Trust for Ornithology (bto.org), seals with the Dorset Wildlife Trust (seals.dorsetwildlifetrust.net), cuttlefish with the Cuttlefish Conservation Initiative. com), seahorses with the Seahorse Trust (theseahorsetrust.org), and even turtles with the Marine Conservation Society (mcsuk.org).

Where to visit…

With a recent injection of £11.6m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Plymouth will soon be home to the UK’s first national marine park, focused on connecting people with nature, restoring the habitat of salt marsh and sea grass, and the rehabilitation of coastal monuments such as Plymouth art. Deco lido by the sea (plymouthsoundnationalmarinepark.com). The project is still in its early stages, but for now you can visit the local National Aquarium, the UK’s largest charity aquarium, run by the Ocean Conversation Trust and focused on marine education (national-aquarium.co.uk).

Down in Devon, catch a wave or just enjoy the view at the UK’s first surfing reserve, created by Save the Waves, a not-for-profit organization working to protect places where wave ecosystems overlap with marine biodiversity hotspots (savethewaves .org).

Head to the sheltered waters of Portelet and Bouley Bay around the island of Jersey, home to rare cold-water corals and kelp forests, and follow the self-guided snorkel trails offered by the Blue Marine Foundation (bluemarinefoundation.com). Or find the self-guided trails offered by the Scottish Wildlife Trust (scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk).

Further afield, this year the Outer Hebrides Wildlife Festival returns between 22 and 29 June, with a fringe festival running throughout July, a celebration of coastal ecosystems with beach walks, wildlife surveys, exhibitions and boat trips, surfing and snorkelling ( outerhebrideswildlifefestival.co.uk ).

Head to the Norfolk seaside towns of Horsey and Winterton to see one of the UK’s largest gray seal colonies: thousands of seals give birth here during the pupping season from November to January, a spectacle you can observe from a safe distance in the surrounding dunes. The animals are protected by Friends of Horsey Seals, who can also arrange guided walks (friendsofhorseyseals.co.uk).