A NEW 'waste warrior' fish sculpture designed to highlight the harm caused by marine plastic has arrived in Poole - and it needs a name.

The installation follows the success of Nellie the fish, who visited Bournemouth’s Pier Approach in July 2020.

The six-metre centrepiece collected plastic bottles and metal cans as part of a month-long visit to highlight the problems caused by throw away waste.

The new fish, which is made entirely from scrap metal including warehouse clothing cages and vehicle parts, will remain at Sandbanks this month before moving to Bournemouth in May and then Boscombe in July.

Founder of We Have The Power (a local environmental fund), Julia Davies said: "Nellie the fish was a great success last July, providing a visual centrepiece for our campaign to tackle beach litter and reduce single use waste. We are delighted that local businesses and supporters have rallied around to secure our very own waste warrior fish for the area.

"These are meaningful steps to reduce the tonnes of rubbish blighting our beaches and green spaces by promoting Reuse, Refill and Reduce, rather than single use and throw away.

"We urgently need to tackle the huge increase in throwaway plastic and other single use items from our beachside bars and cafes."

After Nellie moved on to spread the message elsewhere, We Have The Power joined forces with the Final Straw Foundation to launch a JustGiving campaign to fund a bespoke waste warrior fish for the conurbation.

Funds were soon raised and Sailboat Trailers in Emsworth were commissioned to make a new metal fish.

Service Director, Destination & Culture from BCP Council, Chris Saunders said: "We are delighted to provide a home for our very own waste warrior fish. It represents one part of a larger ambition to engage with and inspire everyone using our beaches, parks and open spaces, particularly over the coming months, to really think about their impact on these environments."

The new structure is being adopted as part of the Leave Only Footprints campaign to engage with residents, visitors, businesses and the wider community to help protect the local environment and reduce waste, litter and pollution.

Residents, visitors and members of the public can send in their name suggestions for the new fish by April 30 here: https://finalstrawfoundation.org/2021/04/06/name-the-fish/