Clean Harbour Cherbourg Project

Clean Harbour Cherbourg Project
France

Denmark

The Cherbourg Clean Harbour project has awareness and education – particularly for younger generations – at its heart.

Every year, under the coordination of the Préfecture maritime de la Manche et de la mer du Nord, the regional divisions of the French Navy, Maritime Police, Customs, and Maritime Affairs, assisted by Fire Department divers, the regional port authorities, the local harbourmaster’s office, along with the Salmon of France (a local commercial salmon farm), deploy under and over water in the Cherbourg area to collect waste polluting the harbour.

On land, local authorities, supported by young people from three local schools, take over to unload, sort and recycle waste at the area provided by the port authority, and by doing so, learn more about the problem of marine litter, and how it can affect the entire underwater ecosystem.

The whole project aims to have as wide a reach as possible, through social media channels, through the press, and – crucially – through raising awareness among young people of the challenges facing our marine environment. In the 2023 exercise, for example, 86 items of rubbish were hauled up from the bottom of the harbour in two days, including tyres, glass, metal, plastic, abandoned crates, shopping trolleys and even motorbikes.

Key to the awareness component of this project is the “village des kiosques” information point which provides more information on the initiative and on the problem of underwater waste. The information point is located at the Cité de la Mer ocean museum in Cherbourg, which receives over 2000 visitors each day. This ensures high visibility for the project and its actions.

The project continues to grow and evolve, with the 2024 edition set to include an invasive species component.

Find out more about the project (external link)