Travel companies, hotels and holidaymakers will be encouraged to take part in the Big Holiday Beach Clean 2016 this summer.
Abta, Travelife and industry charity, The Travel Foundation, are calling for more travel businesses to promote how people can take action to protect the local environment while on holiday, and for hotels to sign up for a beach clean as part of Make Holidays Greener month in July.
The campaign will encourage holidaymakers to take care of the local environment and support local communities in holiday destinations.
A total of 108 beach cleans were organised worldwide last year, involving 68 organisations and more than 1,000 people.
Beaches were cleaned in 20 countries, keeping four tonnes of rubbish out of the marine ecosystem.
Travel Foundation chef executive, Salli Felton, said: “The tourism industry is uniquely placed to make a difference to coastal regions and beaches globally. So it’s great that Abta is now taking the lead with Make Holidays Greener, an initiative we started in 2010.
“The campaign is in good hands, and we’ll support them to make the Big Holiday Beach Clean even bigger in 2016.”
Nikki White, from Abta and Travelife, said: “We’re delighted to be leading this fantastic initiative and working with the Travel Foundation to build on the successes of previous years.
“Cleaner beaches are good for wildlife, for people and for business, so it’s inspiring to see holidaymakers and the industry working together to take care of destinations and protect the marine environment.”
Companies can support the campaign by signing up for a beach clean between now and July, and by sharing their stories and pictures on Facebook and Twitter using #greenerhols.
For those companies not based near a beach, they can organise a different type of event such as a park or mountain clean-up.
The campaign website, makeholidaysgreener.org.uk, features free resources, including how to organise a beach clean and top tips for customers.