ARMY troops have taken part in an extreme clean on the beaches of Bude. The pioneering BeachCare programme teamed up with the 6th Batallion, The Rifles recently tackled marine litter on the more remote coves and beaches of Bude.

Since 2010 the BeachCare programme has completed more than 650 beach cleans, removing more than 98 tonnes of marine litter.

Now they want to take it a step further and tackle the most challenging beaches utilising the fitness of the army’s troops.

Some of the most inaccessible coves were tackled. They removed just under a tonne of rubbish with the largest items being a 19” wheel complete with tyre from a Lexus car and the front quarter of a small boat.

The troops tackled beaches from Stanbury Mouth to Crooklets beach, a stretch of nearly four miles, hauling bags of rubbish up cliff paths, through streams and over rocks to ensure no cove was left untouched.

Neil Hembrow, BeachCare officer, said: “It’s fantastic that the Rifles are on-board with us as they can go that extra mile. I often look at some of the more remote coves that suffer from marine litter and think how can we tackle this problem? We now have a solution as the Army have stepped-up to help us out. I believe that the local beach clean groups and the CORY staff keep the area looking fantastic and now we can add our support for a cleaner coastline ahead of the summer season.

This is the first of BeachCare’s ‘Extreme Clean’ series, where they will be travelling around the South West coastline tackling marine litter with the support of The Rifles Battalion, part of the recruitment section of the Army. Follow their progress at www.facebook.com/beachcare