The warmer it gets, the more rubbish tourists seem to leave behind on Flemish beaches. This is one of the findings of Ostend-based charity Proper Strand Lopers (Clean Beach Combers). Beach litter increases, especially on days when temperatures on the Flemish Riviera soar above 30 degrees Celsius. ‘80 percent of the rubbish comes from the sea, but we can do something about the rubbish we leave on the beach ourselves,’ a spokesman for the environmental association explains.
‘Climate refugees’ are fleeing the hot cities, but are they cleaning up their beach litter?
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Last year's annual figures are clear: 137,000 litres of rubbish were collected on the Flemish coast last year, 25 per cent more than the Proper Strand Lopers collected the previous year.
Less waste in 2025 than last year?
This year, the non-profit organisation only has figures up to June. Up to that point, 39,786 litres of waste had been collected. If we look at the same period last year, we are doing a lot better this year. In 2023, 7,000 litres more was collected in the same period.
Volumes of beach litter collected in 2023 and 2024
Tim Corbisier of Proper Strand Lopers wants to emphasise that when it comes to the volumes of waste collected on the beach, the amount depends heavily on the number of volunteers present. ‘On the beach, it's sometimes like we’re trying to bail out a sinking ship. We can only do so much. There’s always rubbish waiting for us!’
Waste volumes collected during previous summers
‘Nevertheless, as things stand at the moment, we will have a smaller waste mountain this year than last year,’ Corbisier predicts. ‘Last year was the wettest year on record. Higher water levels and a high flow mean that more waste is washed out to sea more quickly.’
‘Climate refugees’ fleeing the hot cities seek refuge on our beaches
This year's dry, warm summer may lead to different results. There may be less waste from the sea, but what about the waste on the beach? More and more people are heading for the beach, Corbisier explains. ‘They are 'climate refugees' fleeing the hot cities,’ he says with a knowing smile.
These are the guys responsible for about 20 percent of the waste collected by Proper Strand Lopers. The remaining 80 percent washes up on the beaches. ‘The 32,000 litres we collected during the summer months last year are mainly the result of the crowds on the beaches.’
More people on the beach, but that doesn't mean capacity is any greater, Corbisier explains. ‘It gets particularly crowded in coastal municipalities with a train station. A city like Ostend is better equipped to cope with tourist litter than say the popular resort of Blankenberge, for example, where things are really getting out of hand.’
Share of waste collected in each resort. Proper Strand Lopers can count on more volunteers in some resorts.
Proper Strand Lopers tries to limit the damage firstly by advising these busy coastal municipalities. ‘Our advice can amount to nothing simpler than the shape of rubbish bins. Bins need a large opening so that they don't get clogged up too quickly. Otherwise, people think they are obliged to put their litter next to the bin.’
Rising temperatures mean more rubbish
The hard work is paying off, because beachgoers have become more aware over the years, notes Corbisier. ‘We know that the amount of waste we clean up clearly depends on the daytime temperature. In the past, it became problematic at 27 or 28 degrees. That's different now.’
Correlation to collected waste amounts and daytime temperature in 2024
Now, a rise in temperatures still means an increase in the amount of waste, but the temperatures in June have already been higher. ‘So up to a certain level, measures seem to be helping.’
When temperatures rise above 30 degrees, litter on the beach is inevitable. This was clear on 12 August last year, for example, when 4,000 litres of litter were collected in a single day.
‘This year, we also had a few hot days in May and June. On one day, we collected 900 litres of rubbish. That's quite a lot. Hopefully, we've seen the peak and people are learning to clean up their own rubbish.’
Raising awareness by asking for assistance
Non-profit organisation Proper Strand Lopers tries to make beachgoers more aware of the issue by speaking to them directly. ‘Sometimes we simply ask them to clean up their own waste. Almost everyone is willing to do so, when we ask.’
Sometimes they go further. ‘We tell beachgoers what we do and ask them to help. When they consider themselves a volunteer, they become aware that everyone is responsible for their own waste.’
‘We try to avoid that critical point, when no one takes any responsibility anymore. That's why we get our request in early. We don't want people to see so much rubbish around them that they feel it's pointless to take responsibility.’
"Nobody has ever been fined"
Volunteers are one thing, but it is also up to the coastal municipalities to ensure proper enforcement. That is a sore spot according to Proper Strand Lopers. ‘Sometimes coastal mayors tell the media that they are going to impose higher fines, but in reality, no fines have ever been issued.’
‘You can link a cigarette butt to an individual. But you can't constantly stand next to someone and prove that they are the one responsible for the litter. But a situation like that creates impunity.’
Proper Strand Lopers has already come up with a suggestion to tackle this too. ‘We thought of an experiment in which everyone is responsible for their own spot on the beach. Take an area with a diameter of say 2 metres. All the litter that ends up there has to be cleaned up by the beachgoer.’
Corbisier believes that’s an experiment that is a step in the right direction. ‘However, it is apparently not that easy to implement. But then it is up to the authorities to come up with a better plan and take responsibility,’ he concludes.