UNDERWEAR, broken glass, rusty nails and takeaway forks were found during a beach clean.

A total of 30 people gathered on Brighton seafront yesterday morning to clear up the rubbish left behind by beachgoers.

Co-ordinated by 22-year-old Georgie Hall, of Marine Parade, Brighton, the group spent more than two hours on the beach getting stuck in.

Miss Hall used the internet to get people behind the event, run as part of the Big Spring Beach Clean by Surfers Against Sewage.

Miss Hall said: “It’s been amazing. It’s really nice to have people come together.

“We live looking out on to the sea and I used to be a surfer. It’s not safe here anymore.”

Miss Hall is currently in a gap year between university and doing a masters, having studied English language and linguistics. She is currently a teaching assistant at St Martin’s CofE primary school in Brighton.

Most Surfers Against Sewage beach clean events took place in March but Georgie was allowed to join the campaign as it is still spring.

She used an events website and the Surfers Against Sewage web page as well as people finding out through word of mouth.

One person helping out was Peter Bemmer, 33, of Roundhill Crescent, Brighton.

He said: “What people tend to do is burn bonfires, which leave behind piles of nails and ash. It’s quite a big problem.

“Living in Brighton it makes sense to keep it clean.

“It’s kind of frustrating to see people using it at their disposal.

“Environmental issues concerning the beach and the ocean are so important for Brighton – the beach is one of its biggest assets.”

Jason Anderton, 40, of Windlesham Road, Hove, and his six-year-old son Kingsley also heard about the group online the day beforehand and decided to come down.

Mr Anderton said the two made a game of it, counting their rubbish as they went.

He said: “He’s got 248 pieces of rubbish and I have about 170. That’s the best way to do it.

“We come down here a lot.

“It’s horrible, especially when you have got a little one.”

The group collected 20 bags of rubbish in total.

Nationally, the Surfers Against Sewage event saw the biggest ever Big Spring Beach Clean at 175 beaches.

About 6,000 people from coastal communities stepped forward to remove 25 tons of marine litter despite many volunteers battling against heavy rain and winds of up to 50mph.

A spokesman for sponsor Protec Direct, said: "Beach cleans are a fantastic way to unite and inspire people of all ages but everyone agrees that it would be fantastic if they were to become a thing of the past as the tideline of trash recedes."

Background

LAST year, the Marine Conservation Society said that East Sussex, including Brighton, had an average of 4,037 items of rubbish per kilometre on its beaches – nearly twice the national average.

Last year’s Big Spring Beach Clean saw more than 3,250 volunteers take part nationally, removing 35 tons of rubbish from 135 beaches, proving the growth of this year's event.