Hi, I'm Proinsias and a founder of Clean Coasts Ballynamona.

Clean Coasts Ballynamona is a volunteer-led community group working to protect and care for our local coastline. What began as local beach clean-ups has grown into year-round environmental action involving schools, families, festivals and community groups.

In recognition of this work, we were honoured to be named An Taisce Clean Coasts Group of the Year for 2025, an award that reflects the commitment of our volunteers and the positive impact of community-led environmental action.

A huge amount of what we do depends on two very practical pieces of equipment: our John Deere Gator and our tractor.

These allow us to remove heavy and hazardous waste from beaches, transport equipment for clean-ups and education events, and safely support volunteers of all ages. From fishing gear and tyres to bags of marine plastic, these vehicles make the difference between identifying a problem and being able to deal with it properly.

Like many community groups, we operate on a very tight budget. Rising costs now means its a continual struggle to cover essential expenses, including:

Without these being addressed, our ability to carry out beach clean-ups, marine education, managing our areas for pollinators and wildlife, and community outreach will be seriously reduced.

We are setting up this GoFundMe to ask for community support to help cover these unavoidable costs and keep our equipment on the road. Every contribution will go directly towards insurance, tax and repairs, nothing else.

This equipment supports work that benefits everyone: cleaner beaches, safer wildlife, better access to our coastline, and environmental education for the next generation.

If you’re able to donate, we are hugely grateful. If not, sharing this page is just as important. Thank you for supporting local, award-winning community action to protect our coast.