Statement provided by Arun District Council, Chichester District Council, West Sussex County Council and Ambipar.
Issue date: 15 December 2025
The clean-up operation in West Sussex is making massive strides following the weekend which saw people from local communities join agency staff in the recovery effort.
Arun District Council, Chichester District Council and West Sussex County Council would like to thank all who came out to support over the weekend, especially litter picking groups Selsey Litter Ninjas and the Final Straw Foundation, for their huge contributions from Selsey to Bognor Regis.
Volunteers and staff from the agencies, and Ambipar all worked alongside to recover debris washed up from the shipping containers from the Baltic Klipper which came ashore last week. Staff were on hand to help organise volunteers and to supply safety briefings, equipment, and bin liners.
The next stage will be to recover the metal containers that remain on the beach. At the moment, the plan is to move the shipping containers into our car parks, where they can be dismantled, and taken away. The container at Bognor Regis is one of the first to be worked on and this is expected to take place on Monday or Tuesday.
Everyone involved is working as quickly and safely as possible to bring this operation to completion. While the containers remain on the beaches, we are asking the public to keep clear of them for their own safety. If the public see work being carried out on the containers to remove them then please keep a safe distance from the area. Please also be mindful of machinery operation in the area.
The Ambipar teams continue to work on the affected areas to remove waste and are using both ground crews and drone technology to identify and assess material washed ashore. A hoover recovery system for smaller pieces of foam has been successfully trialled over the weekend.
We continue to remind anyone visiting the shoreline that the washed-up containers are not safe to enter or climb into. Several are structurally weakened, may shift without warning, and contain broken metal and debris that could cause serious injury. Safety is our priority, and we want everyone to enjoy the coastline without putting themselves at risk.
Volunteers must follow the direction given from officials on site to ensure their safety, including:
• Be aware of hazards on the beach including sharp materials such as metal and plastic that can also be heavy and unstable
• Be aware of and stay away from machinery in use on the beach and around the shoreline
• Be mindful of the tides, currents, tide times and daylight hours and not working longer than it is safe to do so
• Keep well back from the waterline and do not go into the water
• Do not work on your own. Buddy up, work in pairs or small teams
• Wear sensible warm, water-proof and weather-proof clothing and safe, sturdy footwear
• Do not attempt to climb on rocks or other structures, or retrieve materials that could place you in any kind of danger
• Wear gloves and make use of equipment such as litter pickers
• Do not bring young children or pets
• Do not enter cordoned-off areas
• Report any hazards or dangers to Ambipar staff, who will be in branded uniforms
The incident response is ongoing, and the assessment of impacted sites continues. Though major strides have been made, there is still some debris that is washing up on shore due to tides. As such there is no confirmed timeline for when all material has been removed. In the meantime, we ask for the public’s patience as this is an operation that is spread over a wide area.
