Divers off Cornwall join global effort to clean seas for World Oceans Day

Divers removed plastic from the Cornish seabed and joined teams from all over in a global clean up for World Oceans Day.

They removed beach litter, including a vape and plastic water bottles, as well as debris from fishing nets under the water at tourist hotspot Mullion Cove.

They were part of a 40-strong global crew who took to the world’s seven oceans, across seven time zones, to pull plastic pollution from the sea.

Over the course of the day, they aim to remove the equivalent of 50,000 plastic bottles from the sea, as part of the 100YR Clean Up initiative, led by Zero Co and The Hidden Sea wine company, which funds clean ups through sales.

Hidden Sea co-founder Jason Moran took part in the Cornish dive and said: “We’re on a high because to clean all seven seas is nothing short of epic.

A diver removing a vape from the Cornish seabed (Hidden Sea/Zero Co/pa)PA Media - Hidden Sea/Zero Co

“But I also know my fellow divers around the world will face similar depressing underwater scenes today.

“The problem is out of control. We need to get behind efforts to reverse the tide.

“I hope that sharing what we’ve witnessed in the ocean will inspire people to join us in taking action.
 
“I dived in the beautiful tourist destination of Mullion Cove and even though the water looked inviting from the surface, it was sad to see what was hiding under the water.

“It shows how deeply-rooted the plastic problem is.”

Diving crews were also deployed to the Pacific Ocean from Sydney, Australia; the Arctic Ocean at Great Slave Lake, Canada; the South Atlantic Ocean at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; the Indian Ocean at Rushikonda beach, India; the Southern Ocean at Chubut, Argentina; and The Red Sea, at Hurghada, Egypt.