Campaigner to lead beach litter pick near Newbiggin Maritime Centre then run to Alnmouth to combat ocean plastic

Known as the Coastline Runner, he will begin picking up plastic near Newbiggin Maritime Centre at around 10.30am on Wednesday, May 24 and is inviting local residents to come along and join in the litter pick.

Luke, 52, said: “This is something real and tangible that we can do that makes a difference, and that is stopping the huge amount of plastic pollution in our seas.

“Landlords and councils all along this east coast can do effective things to reduce the problem.”

This will be the 27th stretch of the coast that Luke has run, having started in Lowestoft, Suffolk and with the ambition of reaching Leith, Edinburgh at the end of the 30th leg, leading to The Times labelling him a ‘litter-picking Forrest Gump’ in a headline.

He is doing this to promote the international 30x30 ocean campaign, which aims to see 30% of global oceans protected by 2030, and the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

Luke, who is from London, said: “It is not just industry and it is not just holiday makers, there are proper coastal communities all the way up this country, all enjoying and depending upon our wonderful seas.”

In aid of this cause he has run over 500km and collected over 500kg of plastic from the shoreline so far.

This leg is expected to take between three and four hours. He is easy to spot on his journey as he has been wearing bright blue and yellow colours on his journey, following the invasion of Ukraine last year.

In between stages of the runs he has been returning home to work as a chartered environmentalist, which involves helping organisations to improve their environmental impact and running sessions in schools.

Luke said: “The issue is terrible, but it is something that we can do something about.

“Estimates are that between eight and 12 million tonnes a year of plastic goes into the oceans, and 80% of that is from the land, so we can do something about this.”