Forth Ports leads major Firth cleanup

The largest-ever clean-up of the Firth of Forth has taken place, bringing communities together across Scotland’s iconic coastline over the bank holiday weekend of 28-30 August.

The Big Forth Cleanup was organised by environmental charity Balanced Horizon in partnership with Forth Ports, with people of all ages invited to remove litter from beaches and coastal areas around the Firth.

The community-led initiative aimed to tackle pollution while highlighting the importance of protecting habitats supporting vulnerable marine and coastal wildlife. Participants selected beaches to clean using Balanced Horizon’s interactive online map, with local groups including the Scottish Seabird Centre, CLP Nature Action and Coast to Coast Surf School among those taking part.

Katy Reid, group head of sustainability at Forth Ports, said the event had been a ‘landmark event’ for the region.

“Bringing people together to take action at scale will make a meaningful difference in caring for and preserving the coastline and local environment,” she said, adding that the company was pleased by the strong response from individuals, organisations and established beach-clean groups.

Balanced Horizon project lead Kerrie Flockhart said the partnership had helped unite communities around a shared goal. “We’re proud to be partnering with Forth Ports to unite communities from across the Firth in a shared effort to protect and celebrate this incredible coastline,” she said.

The weekend also included juvenile European lobster releases on 30 August, in North Berwick, Anstruther and Kirkcaldy. The releases were led by Balanced Horizon’s Forth Marine Hatchery project, which is working to support wild European lobster populations.

The public was invited to participate in the releases, adding a marine conservation element to a weekend focused on protecting the Firth’s coastline.