{"id":204790,"date":"2021-10-12T05:46:57","date_gmt":"2021-10-12T03:46:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/?p=108556"},"modified":"2021-10-12T05:46:57","modified_gmt":"2021-10-12T03:46:57","slug":"big-prizes-up-for-grabs-in-the-national-nurdle-mermaid-tear-clean-up-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/big-prizes-up-for-grabs-in-the-national-nurdle-mermaid-tear-clean-up-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Big prizes up for grabs in the national nurdle (mermaid tear) clean-up competition!"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Following the resurgence of plastic nurdle pollution across South African beaches, Litter4Tokens \u2013 in partnership with Lifesaving South Africa, and the Centre of Regenerative Design and Collaboration (CRDC) \u2013 have launched the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition, running from September 2021 through to February 2022.<\/p>\n

Collection drums, sponsored by DRUMPAL, will be located at identified lifesaving clubs along the South African coastline, from Cape Town to KwaDukuza in KwaZulu-Natal. People can use the drums to dispose of nurdles (also referred to as \u2018mermaid\u2019s tears\u2019), with prizes awarded to both the lifesaving club as well as the individual that collects the most nurdles during the eight-month stretch. It\u2019s important that the drums are used, as nurdles cannot be placed in recycling bins.<\/p>\n

The NPO and two-time Stevie Award-winner, Litter4Tokens, was founded by Clare Swithenbank-Bowman, the CEO of Nurdle SA. It\u2019s an educational and clean-up campaign that addresses the devastating impact of nurdles on marine life as well as feeding the nation.<\/p>\n

The competition, which will run alongside Litter4Token\u2019s ongoing projects, has been launched in response to the catastrophic spill of trillions of plastic nurdles by Vinmar Polymers America \u2013 Vinmar Polymers America and ExxonMobil in August 2020 off the coast of Plettenburg Bay, as well as the 2017 spill in Durban Harbour and continued dumping by manufacturers upstream in rivers systems.<\/p>\n

Lifesaving South Africa, which is proud partner on the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition, has encouraged all clubs to take up the challenge and participate in local beach clean-up activities and nurdle collections.<\/p>\n

Dhaya Sewduth, President of Lifesaving SA said: \u201cThis project finds synergy with the efforts of thousands of our voluntary duty members who contribute to environmental stewardship and conservation in aquatic environments as their small contribution towards achieving some of the Sustainable Development Goals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lending support to the competition is Grant \u2018Twiggy\u2019 Baker, legendary South African big wave surfer and three-time WSL World Champion. He commented: \u201cNurdle pollution is a huge problem, almost every beach I travel to around the world has these environmentally disastrous pieces of plastic on them. The work that Litter4Tokens is doing to try and help clean these things up is fantastic. Please help support them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another legendary South African surfer, Beyrick De Vries, has also come on board as ambassador for Litter4Tokens. He recently assisted with a nurdle clean-up at Cardiff Reef Beach in California, where he educated children and families about the danger of microplastics.<\/p>\n

The danger of nurdle pollution<\/p>\n

Nurdles are lentil-sized plastic pellets made of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride, among others. These pellets are shipped, shrink-wrapped in 25 kg bags on pallet bases to factories around the world that melt them down to form plastic products.<\/p>\n

Currently, nurdles are not considered hazardous as per the OSHA (Occupational Health and Safety Act) Hazard Communication Standard and IMDG (International Maritime Dangerous Goods) code. In fact, most shippers don\u2019t know even they have them on board, but if containers are lost at sea, the bags will split open, dispersing the nurdles.<\/p>\n

Once spilt, this microplastic is hugely detrimental to marine ecosystems and humans, as they quickly find their way into the food system leading to ulceration, starvation and death. They do not biodegrade and a recent discovery indicated that nurdles follow the same ocean currents as turtles, making them particularly hazardous for these species.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo put this in perspective, in 2017 we had a freak storm that resulted in two containers with trillions of nurdles falling overboard,\u201d explained Swithenbank-Bowman. \u201cThis resulted in 2.2 billion nurdles being spilt in the Durban Harbour from Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic). These washed up along the KwaZulu-Natal coastline from Ballito to the KZN South Coast. Only 72% percent of that spill has been cleaned to date.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swithenbank-Bowman said that, in addition to this spill, there was another spill of more than 174.5 metric tons in August 2020 off Plettenberg Bay, and there has been illegal dumping of nurdles by manufacturers upstream in rivers, with nurdles washing up on beaches in eThekwini region. To date, only 12.6% of these nurdles have been retrieved.<\/p>\n

Finding a solution to the nurdle problem<\/p>\n

In light of this, and with recent reports indicating that there will be more waste plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050, Litter4Tokens is calling on everyone to get involved to change the trajectory of this devastating path. Education is key, and it\u2019s vital that people understand what nurdles are and why they\u2019re so devastating to the environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cLitter4Tokens has also presented to the International Maritime Organisation and campaigning to help get the nurdles\u2019 code changed to a hazardous IMDG code with immediate effect, this way if containers are lost at sea the cargo won\u2019t get released into the ocean. Nurdles are oil in a different format\u201d said Swithenbank-Bowman. \u201cThe ocean is the earth\u2019s life force, and if we don\u2019t get on top of this plastic crisis now, the ocean is literally going to choke. It\u2019s now or never.\u201d<\/p>\n

How to enter the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition<\/p>\n

Litter4Tokens has developed the innovative Mermaid Tear Catcher (MTC), a scooping device with holes specifically demarcated allowing the user to sieve the nurdles out of the dry sea or river sand. It is made from ocean-bound plastic, and all funds raised from the sales go towards the Litter4Tokens kiosks in South Africa, thereby creating a perfect, circular economy. The MTC can be ordered online at www.litter4tokens.co.za and, when not used for collecting nurdles, it doubles as a frisbee!<\/p>\n

The DRUMPAL drums will include sponsor branding as well as clear instructions on how to collect the nurdles. Once participants have made their collection, they must take a photo and upload it to<\/p>\n

Record Your Nurdle Catch | Litter4Tokens, alongside the unique MTC code (if you have bought one), the geographic location, or the name of the lifesaving club. There will be monthly winners for the most Nurdles collected.<\/p>\n

The drums will be located at various Lifesaving South Africa clubs (with further rollouts as lockdown measures ease), including:<\/p>\n

Milnerton Surf Lifesaving Club
Loxton road
Woodbridge Island
Milnerton
7441<\/p>\n

Scottburgh Surf Lifesaving Club
Pavilion 1
Marine Terrace \u2013 Scottburgh Main Beach
Scottburgh 4180<\/p>\n

Umtamvuna Surf Lifesaving Club
14 Lilypond Lane
Munster
KZN
4278<\/p>\n

Pirates Surf Lifesaving Club
Battery Beach Rd
Durban Central
Durban
4000<\/p>\n

Mzamba Surf Lifesaving Club
Wild Coast Casino,
Water Wave Park,
Lifeguards Room<\/p>\n

Zimbali Estate \u2013 Zema offices<\/p>\n

*Cape Town and beyond
Anyone outside of these areas wanting to participate can take pictures and drop off nurdles at Muizenberg or Fish Hoek Shark Spotter\u2019s office, or at other locations identified by Spilltech on the Litter4tokens website.<\/p>\n

The drums will be sent to Spilltech once they are full, the nurdles will be analysed and then be collected by CRDC, where they will be converted into RESIN8 cement used to make bricks to build houses. The data collected will be sent to FIDRA, the Global Nurdle Foundation in Scotland which runs The Great Nurdle Hunt dedicated to tackling nurdle pollution. There will be monthly winners announced from 30th September 2021 to January 2022, with the final data collated at the end and an overall winner announced.<\/p>\n

What you could win over R50,000 worth of prizes!!
\u2022 The winning SA Lifesaving Club will receive R10 000 in prize money.
\u2022 Individuals can win R10 000 worth of vouchers from Hurricane Surf; a Jacki Bruniquel photography course, \u2018The Art of Being Through Seeing\u2019, valued at more than R5 000; free yoga lessons for a month with Helen Garner; and FITKIT vouchers for new yoga gym wear.
\u2022 Win two nights (standard accommodation) for two people at The Cavern Resort & Spa. Named after the infamous Cannibal Cavern, the resort is nestled in the foothills of the northern Drakensberg in the Amphitheatre World Heritage Site area. The prize includes all meals, teas and guided morning hikes, valued at R6 400.
\u2022 and also a 2 night for 2 in superior accommodation including all meals, teas and guided morning hikes \u2013 value: R8080. More prizes are still to be announced!
\u2022 R2000 dinner vouchers at Zimbali.
*Visit the website for competition terms and conditions www.litter4tokens.co.za<\/p>\n

Become part of the solution through your sponsorship or partnership. Simply email clare@litter4tokens.co.za for more information. To find out more about the exciting work being done by Litter4Tokens, or to order a Mermaid Tear Catcher, visit Following the resurgence of plastic nurdle pollution across South African beaches, Litter4Tokens \u2013 in partnership with Lifesaving South Africa, and the Centre of Regenerative Design and Collaboration (CRDC) \u2013 have launched the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition, running from September 2021 through to February 2022.<\/p>\n

Collection drums, sponsored by DRUMPAL, will be located at identified lifesaving clubs along the South African coastline, from Cape Town to KwaDukuza in KwaZulu-Natal. People can use the drums to dispose of nurdles (also referred to as \u2018mermaid\u2019s tears\u2019), with prizes awarded to both the lifesaving club as well as the individual that collects the most nurdles during the eight-month stretch. It\u2019s important that the drums are used, as nurdles cannot be placed in recycling bins.<\/p>\n

The NPO and two-time Stevie Award-winner, Litter4Tokens, was founded by Clare Swithenbank-Bowman, the CEO of Nurdle SA. It\u2019s an educational and clean-up campaign that addresses the devastating impact of nurdles on marine life as well as feeding the nation.<\/p>\n

The competition, which will run alongside Litter4Token\u2019s ongoing projects, has been launched in response to the catastrophic spill of trillions of plastic nurdles by Vinmar Polymers America \u2013 Vinmar Polymers America and ExxonMobil in August 2020 off the coast of Plettenburg Bay, as well as the 2017 spill in Durban Harbour and continued dumping by manufacturers upstream in rivers systems.<\/p>\n

Lifesaving South Africa, which is proud partner on the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition, has encouraged all clubs to take up the challenge and participate in local beach clean-up activities and nurdle collections.<\/p>\n

Dhaya Sewduth, President of Lifesaving SA said: \u201cThis project finds synergy with the efforts of thousands of our voluntary duty members who contribute to environmental stewardship and conservation in aquatic environments as their small contribution towards achieving some of the Sustainable Development Goals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lending support to the competition is Grant \u2018Twiggy\u2019 Baker, legendary South African big wave surfer and three-time WSL World Champion. He commented: \u201cNurdle pollution is a huge problem, almost every beach I travel to around the world has these environmentally disastrous pieces of plastic on them. The work that Litter4Tokens is doing to try and help clean these things up is fantastic. Please help support them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another legendary South African surfer, Beyrick De Vries, has also come on board as ambassador for Litter4Tokens. He recently assisted with a nurdle clean-up at Cardiff Reef Beach in California, where he educated children and families about the danger of microplastics.<\/p>\n

The danger of nurdle pollution<\/p>\n

Nurdles are lentil-sized plastic pellets made of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride, among others. These pellets are shipped, shrink-wrapped in 25 kg bags on pallet bases to factories around the world that melt them down to form plastic products.<\/p>\n

Currently, nurdles are not considered hazardous as per the OSHA (Occupational Health and Safety Act) Hazard Communication Standard and IMDG (International Maritime Dangerous Goods) code. In fact, most shippers don\u2019t know even they have them on board, but if containers are lost at sea, the bags will split open, dispersing the nurdles.<\/p>\n

Once spilt, this microplastic is hugely detrimental to marine ecosystems and humans, as they quickly find their way into the food system leading to ulceration, starvation and death. They do not biodegrade and a recent discovery indicated that nurdles follow the same ocean currents as turtles, making them particularly hazardous for these species.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo put this in perspective, in 2017 we had a freak storm that resulted in two containers with trillions of nurdles falling overboard,\u201d explained Swithenbank-Bowman. \u201cThis resulted in 2.2 billion nurdles being spilt in the Durban Harbour from Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic). These washed up along the KwaZulu-Natal coastline from Ballito to the KZN South Coast. Only 72% percent of that spill has been cleaned to date.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swithenbank-Bowman said that, in addition to this spill, there was another spill of more than 174.5 metric tons in August 2020 off Plettenberg Bay, and there has been illegal dumping of nurdles by manufacturers upstream in rivers, with nurdles washing up on beaches in eThekwini region. To date, only 12.6% of these nurdles have been retrieved.<\/p>\n

Finding a solution to the nurdle problem<\/p>\n

In light of this, and with recent reports indicating that there will be more waste plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050, Litter4Tokens is calling on everyone to get involved to change the trajectory of this devastating path. Education is key, and it\u2019s vital that people understand what nurdles are and why they\u2019re so devastating to the environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cLitter4Tokens has also presented to the International Maritime Organisation and campaigning to help get the nurdles\u2019 code changed to a hazardous IMDG code with immediate effect, this way if containers are lost at sea the cargo won\u2019t get released into the ocean. Nurdles are oil in a different format\u201d said Swithenbank-Bowman. \u201cThe ocean is the earth\u2019s life force, and if we don\u2019t get on top of this plastic crisis now, the ocean is literally going to choke. It\u2019s now or never.\u201d<\/p>\n

How to enter the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition<\/p>\n

Litter4Tokens has developed the innovative Mermaid Tear Catcher (MTC), a scooping device with holes specifically demarcated allowing the user to sieve the nurdles out of the dry sea or river sand. It is made from ocean-bound plastic, and all funds raised from the sales go towards the Litter4Tokens kiosks in South Africa, thereby creating a perfect, circular economy. The MTC can be ordered online at www.litter4tokens.co.za and, when not used for collecting nurdles, it doubles as a frisbee!<\/p>\n

The DRUMPAL drums will include sponsor branding as well as clear instructions on how to collect the nurdles. Once participants have made their collection, they must take a photo and upload it to<\/p>\n

Record Your Nurdle Catch | Litter4Tokens, alongside the unique MTC code (if you have bought one), the geographic location, or the name of the lifesaving club. There will be monthly winners for the most Nurdles collected.<\/p>\n

The drums will be located at various Lifesaving South Africa clubs (with further rollouts as lockdown measures ease), including:<\/p>\n

Milnerton Surf Lifesaving Club
Loxton road
Woodbridge Island
Milnerton
7441<\/p>\n

Scottburgh Surf Lifesaving Club
Pavilion 1
Marine Terrace \u2013 Scottburgh Main Beach
Scottburgh 4180<\/p>\n

Umtamvuna Surf Lifesaving Club
14 Lilypond Lane
Munster
KZN
4278<\/p>\n

Pirates Surf Lifesaving Club
Battery Beach Rd
Durban Central
Durban
4000<\/p>\n

Mzamba Surf Lifesaving Club
Wild Coast Casino,
Water Wave Park,
Lifeguards Room<\/p>\n

Zimbali Estate \u2013 Zema offices<\/p>\n

*Cape Town and beyond
Anyone outside of these areas wanting to participate can take pictures and drop off nurdles at Muizenberg or Fish Hoek Shark Spotter\u2019s office, or at other locations identified by Spilltech on the Litter4tokens website.<\/p>\n

The drums will be sent to Spilltech once they are full, the nurdles will be analysed and then be collected by CRDC, where they will be converted into RESIN8 cement used to make bricks to build houses. The data collected will be sent to FIDRA, the Global Nurdle Foundation in Scotland which runs The Great Nurdle Hunt dedicated to tackling nurdle pollution. There will be monthly winners announced from 30th September 2021 to January 2022, with the final data collated at the end and an overall winner announced.<\/p>\n

What you could win over R50,000 worth of prizes!!
\u2022 The winning SA Lifesaving Club will receive R10 000 in prize money.
\u2022 Individuals can win R10 000 worth of vouchers from Hurricane Surf; a Jacki Bruniquel photography course, \u2018The Art of Being Through Seeing\u2019, valued at more than R5 000; free yoga lessons for a month with Helen Garner; and FITKIT vouchers for new yoga gym wear.
\u2022 Win two nights (standard accommodation) for two people at The Cavern Resort & Spa. Named after the infamous Cannibal Cavern, the resort is nestled in the foothills of the northern Drakensberg in the Amphitheatre World Heritage Site area. The prize includes all meals, teas and guided morning hikes, valued at R6 400.
\u2022 and also a 2 night for 2 in superior accommodation including all meals, teas and guided morning hikes \u2013 value: R8080. More prizes are still to be announced!
\u2022 R2000 dinner vouchers at Zimbali.
*Visit the website for competition terms and conditions www.litter4tokens.co.za<\/p>\n

Become part of the solution through your sponsorship or partnership. Simply email clare@litter4tokens.co.za for more information. To find out more about the exciting work being done by Litter4Tokens, or to order a Mermaid Tear Catcher, visit www.litter4tokens.co.za.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE to submit your press release to MyPR.co.za<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pages: Page <\/span>1<\/span> Page <\/span>2<\/a><\/div>\n

Source: MyPR.co.za<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Following the resurgence of plastic nurdle pollution across South African beaches, Litter4Tokens \u2013 in partnership with Lifesaving South Africa, and the Centre of Regenerative Design and Collaboration (CRDC) \u2013 have launched the Litter4Tokens Nurdle SA Clean-Up Competition, running from September 2021 through to February 2022. Collection drums, sponsored by DRUMPAL, will be located at identified […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":204791,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[18,9021],"tags":[3257],"class_list":{"0":"post-204790","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-durban","8":"category-mypr","9":"tag-mypr","10":"entry"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/big-prizes-up-for-grabs-in-the-national-nurdle-mermaid-tear-clean-up-competition.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204790","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204790"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204790\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204791"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204790"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204790"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}