We recently announced that we reached the milestone of 15 million items being recorded in the Australian Marine Debris Initiative Database, and we could not have done it without our amazing partner Clean4Shore!
Over the last three years, they have contributed to more than 100 datasets: that is one clean-up every 10 days on average, making them the single most important contributor to the database. Plastic bottles, plastic bags, and pieces of polystyrene were the most commonly picked up items, but they found anything from microplastics to abandoned oyster farming gear and sunken boats.
Leading over 70 field trips last year alone, Clean4Shore works closely with community groups and schools to remove litter from the waterways on the Central Coast in New South Wales. They also provide valuable mentoring and education about the effects of marine pollution to all participants, which is essential to ensure debris are stopped from entering our oceans in the first place.
Graham Johnston, Project Manager at Clean4shore said “The clean-ups are a practical solution to reduce ocean pollution but we are also educating communities about the dreadful impact littering has on marine life and seabirds. Seeing that young people have a growing interest in preserving our environment is very encouraging, and we hope that the decline in the amount of debris we are picking up each year will be an ongoing trend.”
Tangaroa Blue is grateful to have partners such as Clean4shore. We extend a warm thank you to them as well as to all the volunteers who have been involved in their clean-ups. Their work has been essential in helping shape impactful local source reduction plans to protect the health of our marine environment.
To find out more about Clean4Shore, visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Clean4shoremacs/ or email jonomacs@bigpond.com.
