When most people think of Lamma Island, they imagine beautiful hiking trails, luscious green surroundings and of course, the numerous picturesque beaches dotted along the coastline. Few people would associate this idyllic paradise with the tonnes of garbage that wash up on its shores, but for some people living on Lamma, the fight against this tide of plastic waste is a sad, daily reality. One of those tackling this problem head on is Stanley Chan, current Chairperson of Living Lamma. Living Lamma is a registered non-profit green group, founded in 2009 by former Chairperson and Lammaite, Jo Wilson. Over the years, they have rallied volunteers from across Hong Kong, including schools, businesses and the local community, to assist with their regular beach clean ups. These clean ups are no mean feat, and the figures are upsetting and striking; Stanley tells us that Living Lamma’s small team of volunteers have collected over 8000 plastic bottles in the past three months alone, including more than 700 on a single beach over the Easter weekend. Throughout March, their total rubbish haul weighed in at more than half a tonne - this mountain of waste was enough to fill 114 bin bags! Faced with this seemingly endless stream of waste on Lamma’s shores, how do Stanley and the rest of the Living Lamma team find the inspiration to continue? “I try to make beach clean-ups fun for the volunteers, by incorporating kayaking and SUPs (stand up paddleboards),” Stanley says, “There is only so much rubbish a handful of people can pick up, but we keep motivated by knowing that we’re doing this for future generations.”

While the issue of plastic pollution may seem overwhelming, the old adage, ‘every little helps’ always rings true. While the problem won’t go away over night, collectively we can make a difference and help to drive meaningful change. Even simple attitude and lifestyle changes add up; single-use plastic bottles account for the majority of plastic waste found on beaches, so switching to reusable water bottles is a great place to start, says Stanley. If you’re in need of a refill while on Lamma, you can even stop by and visit Stanley at Lamma Corner (G/F, 92 Yung Shue Wan Main St.), where you can top up your water bottle with clean drinking water free of charge. Aside from its regular beach clean ups, Living Lamma also performs important research about Lamma’s biodiversity, providing education to the local community and helping to raise awareness about the negative impact of plastics on the local ecology. They carry out regular biodiversity checks and have observed and recorded more than 1500 different plant and animals species on the island, among them 123 species of butterfly, 283 moths (with one potentially new species of moth only found on Lamma!), 11 snakes, 120 different birds, and numerous others. Living Lamma are always looking for volunteers to help out with their beach clean ups, so if you’re keen to get involved, please check out their Facebook page @LivingLamma for upcoming dates.