Volunteers from Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Douglas recently joined forces with local beach cleaning charity Beach Buddies to clean the beaches of Port St Mary after storms washed up rubbish.

The day of cleaning resulted in 42 bags of rubbish weighing 340kg being cleared away, and included dozens of oil drums, lobster pots, fishing gear and thousands of small plastic and tin items.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch divided into two teams, with one tackling Chapel Beach, Port St Mary in the morning, and the other removing rubbish from Fisher’s Hill in the afternoon at Bay Ny Carrickey. The morning team covered the coastline between Gansey Point and Port St Mary harbour, and the afternoon team focused on the length of beach south of Fisher’s Hill.

“The sheer amount of rubbish brought in by the storm was a surprise to everyone,” said Kevin Stannard, operations manager at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. “An initial glance at the beaches suggested the session wouldn’t take long, but within minutes we realised this was a much bigger job. However, it was a great way for the team to come together and help improve our local community.”

“They did a really good job, and left around two miles of beaches spotless. The majority of the bank’s staff were trying beach cleaning for the first time,” said Beach Buddies founder Bill Dale, who organised and joined the two sessions.

“Many said they felt a real sense of achievement, and that is really what it’s all about – giving a small amount of time to make a huge difference to the environment and wildlife. It was a great day, with lots of banter on the beach and plenty of smiles throughout the two sessions. I’m certain Bank of America Merrill Lynch will return for another clean-up day in the future.”