On Friday 8 April, 14 of FINNZ staff joined our experienced team at Houghton Bay for an afternoon beach clean-up. The changeable weather made for an energetic Wellington day and that energy was transferred to the team.

Oliver Vetter gave a brief presentation about the issues facing our waters from single-use plastics and the simple solutions we can all contribute to help as Te Kawa Robb handed out gloves and bags. After a health and safety brief the team set out onto the beach. Over the course of the next hour the team removed a whopping 400 litres (62.5 kilos) of rubbish from the car park both East and West along the beach, particularly focussing on the rocky outcrop between Houghton and Princess Bays.

Sometimes on all fours through bushes and over rocks, the team removed a great haul of single-use plastic products that had found its way onto the steep banks of the bays by littering from land, and floating in from the ocean. It’s amazing what a small group can do, and how much rubbish you can find when you take the time to look.

We all came together for a photo and prizegiving in Princess Bay, with Marcus getting the water bottle for finding the strangest thing — an angel figurine holding a flower!?!

A fantastic effort by everyone involved, and we look forward to working with such a good-spirited team again.