Dr Eugene Farrell recently worked with Fingal County Council, An Taisce, and local coastal communities to identify the need for a  ‘best practice’ guide for beach cleaning in County Dublin. Public concerns of the dumping of the cleaned beach litter back on the dunes (containing plastics, wipes, faeces, etc.) need to be addressed with short- and long-term solutions. Dr Farrell’s role was to provide a scientific basis for beach-dune management and encourage local communities and local authorities to work together to adopt management plans that are sustainable and strike a proper balance between conservation and use of the beach and dune systems during the busy summer bathing months.