At Amec Foster Wheeler, we believe that encouraging and supporting community investment activities carried out by employees is important. Working together for good causes promotes well-being, supports local communities and helps demonstrate our values, particularly how we care about the communities in which we live, work, and play.
Once such cause is the California Coastal Cleanup Day. Launched in 1985 by the California Coastal Commission with approximately 2,500 volunteers committed to picking up trash along California coastlines, it is now endorsed by the Ocean Conservancy as an international event known as the International Coastal Cleanup, and holds the title of the largest volunteer clean-up event on the planet!
Amec Foster Wheeler has been supporting Shoreline Cleanups over the past ten years by sponsoring cleanups and encouraging employees to do their part across the globe! We’ve had thousands of employees participate from our offices around the globe, and these efforts have seen our employees help remove 8,600 kilos (or 19,000 pounds) of trash from waterways in our local communities.
Marine debris can endanger wildlife though entanglement, ingestion, and disruption of habitat. It is a global problem that impacts human health and safety, endangers wildlife and aquatic habitats, and costs local and national economies millions in wasted resources and lost revenues.
In 2014, over 561,895 volunteers participated in this global event and worked to remove nearly 7.5 million kilos (or more than 16,186,759 pounds) of trash and recyclables from the world’s beaches, lakes, and waterways. Debris collection data shows the number one trash item collected is cigarette butts, followed by food wrappers, beverage bottles and bottle caps.