Nearly 4,000 pieces of litter per kilometre can be found on Sussex’s beaches.

The Marine Conservation Society revealed the shocking state of littering on the county’s landmarks today as it backed The Argus’s Take It Home campaign.

The society discovered 3,900 items of rubbish per kilometre on 16 beaches in East Sussex, and 1,860 across the 13 beaches it tidied in West Sussex during its annual beach clean-up.

Plastic Both were above the national average of 1,741 pieces of litter found per kilometre.

Nearly 20,000 pieces of litter were recovered across the county, with Brackelsham Bay producing 64kg of rubbish alone.

Birling Bay produced the most rubbish in East Sussex, with 55kg of litter picked up.

The most commonly found litter was plastic, which can take thousands of years to break down.

The organisation is planning another clean-up in September, but in the meantime it is backing our campaign to make sure beach-goers keep the county tidy.

Lauren Davis, Beachwatch officer for the Marine Conservation Society, said: “The litter washing up on our shores is not just unpleasant to look at, it can harm or even kill some of our best-loved marine wildlife.

“More than 170 species, including seabirds, turtles and whales, can mistake marine litter for food and eat it, which in many cases has resulted in starvation, poisoning and ultimately a slow, painful death.

“Plastic packaging and discarded fishing nets |also injure, entangle and drown some of Britain’s favourite marine animals, including seals and dolphins.

“The Marine Conservation Society are delighted |to join forces with The Argus to keep beaches in Sussex free from litter and to encourage people to take their litter home.”

The campaign was launched when beaches and parks in Brighton and Hover were left covered in mess after one of the busiest weekends of the year.

Cleaners One council employee, who did not wish to be named, said he believed at least eight tonnes of litter had been removed by |cleaners.

He said that cleaners “could not win the battle” against the amount of |rubbish that was left on beaches on Sunday.

Residents complained about the “disgusting” state the beach was left in |on Monday, with cans,|broken glass, plastic cups, and abandoned barbecues strewn across the pebbles.