Balloons are in the top three most harmful waste items to wildlife. Birds and turtles not only ingest balloons, they actively select them as food. This is because a burst balloon often resembles a jellyfish, the natural food sources of many marine species like turtles.
Ingesting balloons, and the clips and strings attached to them, can cause intestinal blockages and results in a slow painful death through starvation. Marine animals don’t have the gastrointestinal pH levels to breakdown a balloon and for turtles, it may also cause floating syndrome. Trapped gases in the gut can cause a turtle to become buoyant, unable to dive for food—making them vulnerable to boat strikes and leading to starvation and severe dehydration.
Wildlife, both terrestrial and marine, can also become entangled in balloon ribbons or strings, causing injury or death through drowning, suffocation, or an inability to feed and avoid predators.
Even if balloons are disposed of "safely" they go to landfill where it may take up to 1,000 years to decompose, leaching potentially toxic substances into the soil and water. Why are some organisations like this so stubborn in regards to using balloons as "advertising fun?
Even if these balloons are biodegradable, it's greenwash. Natural latex may be biodegradable, but after adding chemicals, plasticizers and artificial dyes, how natural could it be? It may degrade after several years, but it’s surely not “biodegradable.” Balloons are also the number 1 cause of death in sea birds such as Albatross and Mutton birds that have consumed plastic.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #balloons #balloonsblow #loveManly #litter #beachcleanup #Manlybeach

With NSW and WA announcing their commitment to phasing out certain single-use plastics over the weekend, you're probably wondering how all of the states compare.... Check out our handy graphic below to see what your state is doing to phase out single-use plastics
Thank you to Australian Marine Conservation Society.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree #saynotoplastic #plasticpollutes #plastic #beachcleanup

Please take your rubbish with you. It can trap, entangle, hurt and poison animals.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #litter

Who is missing council clean up days?
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #councilcleanup #beachescouncil

Happy World Environment Day and World Ocean Day to all of you legends who are part of the crew. All of you who turn up to the clean ups, share our posts, spread awareness and are just all around incredibly kind and awesome people that we are happy to know. We love getting to know each and every one of you. 
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup

School children got a huge shock when they turned up to their usual swimming lesson to find the pool full of plastic waste. Pupils from a primary school, in Measham, were expecting a normal swimming lesson but got more than they bargained for.
The school's deputy head said that the school had organised the stunt to tie in with pupils' lessons on the environment and the dangers of plastic pollution. She said: "The reaction of the children was quite profound. "The first thing they said was - 'It's just like the sea'.
FULL STORY: http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/.../school-kids-turn-up...
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic

This juvenile Pied Shag was dropped off to Wellington Zoo after being found on the ground, weak and emaciated. The team at The Nest Te Kōhanga immediately performed an endoscopy and then managed to get a vape pen out, but unfortunately the Shag died overnight.
The vet team suspect he wouldn’t have been able to eat for days before he came in and would’ve suffered from serious metal and nicotine poisoning.
Unfortunately we see animals with these sorts of problems regularly. A sad reminder to please always tidy up after yourself and make sure these lovely birds don’t mistake your rubbish for food.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #beachcleanup #trashtag #plasticocean #trash #litter #beachcleanup #savethisplanet #bird

Sri Lanka is facing the worst environmental disaster in its history after a cargo ship carrying chemicals caught fire off its coast, spilling microplastics across the country’s pristine beaches and killing marine life. The ship was carrying 25 tonnes of nitric acid, sodium hydroxide and other dangerous chemicals as well as 28 CONTAINERS OF PLASTIC USED TO MAKE PLASTIC BAGS! It also had more than 300 tonnes of fuel in its tanks.

The fire on MV X-Press Pearl, a Singapore-registered ship, broke out on 20 May and has been burning ever since. The Sri Lankan navy and Indian coastguard have been trying to reduce the flames for more than 10 days. Local people have been told not to touch any of the debris as it could be highly toxic and fishing has been banned within a 50-mile radius of the scene.
Images credit to BBC News and ABC News
#breakingnews #chemicalspill #microplastics #srilanka #wildaware #beachcleanup #trashtag #plasticocean #trash #litter #beachcleanup #trashtag #northernbeachescleanupcrew

Every little step counts.
Merimbula McDonald’s has committed to divert its food waste from landfill through Bega Valley Shire Council’s FOGO (Food Organics and Garden Organics) for Business scheme.
The Merimbula franchise is the first McDonald’s restaurant in NSW to adopt the FOGO scheme, adding to a growing number of local businesses pushing for better food waste management.
Council’s FOGO for Business Project Officer, Rechelle Fisher said the quick service restaurant’s decision shows a commitment to explore the commercial and environmental benefits of diverting food waste to Council’s composting facility.
“This is an established local business showing that responsible food waste management can be a commercially made decision with great social and environmental outcomes,” Ms Fisher said.
“It’s the bottom line that often dictates choosing one path over another, and Merimbula Macca’s plus a growing number of other local businesses now realise that saving on costs and making positive environmental changes go hand-in-hand.
“Another positive is the collaboration between Council staff and Merimbula McDonald’s management in overcoming challenges that may have otherwise resulted in FOGO not working for their business. “Initially, the restaurant jumped on board in 2019 as an early adopter of commercial FOGO in the Bega Valley. Their first go at this wasn’t so successful due to implementing different disposal methods with staff. “The Restaurant Manager flagged these issues with the FOGO team, and we were able to work with them to overcome any challenges.”
Restaurant Manager, Ryan Fraser said the restaurant reintroduced the FOGO bins late last year and the service is now running smoothly.
“Thanks to help from Council’s FOGO team we are now keeping food waste out of landfill and saving money on our disposal costs. It’s a win for everyone.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #lesswaste #fogo

​Balloons are in the top three most harmful waste items to wildlife. Birds and turtles not only ingest balloons, they actively select them as food. This is because a burst balloon often resembles a jellyfish, the natural food sources of many marine species like turtles.
Ingesting balloons, and the clips and strings attached to them, can cause intestinal blockages and results in a slow painful death through starvation. Marine animals don’t have the gastrointestinal pH levels to breakdown a balloon and for turtles, it may also cause floating syndrome. Trapped gases in the gut can cause a turtle to become buoyant, unable to dive for food—making them vulnerable to boat strikes and leading to starvation and severe dehydration.
Wildlife, both terrestrial and marine, can also become entangled in balloon ribbons or strings, causing injury or death through drowning, suffocation, or an inability to feed and avoid predators.
Even if balloons are disposed of "safely" they go to landfill where it may take up to 1,000 years to decompose, leaching potentially toxic substances into the soil and water. Why are some organisations like this so stubborn in regards to using balloons as "advertising fun?
Even if these balloons are biodegradable, it's greenwash. Natural latex may be biodegradable, but after adding chemicals, plasticizers and artificial dyes, how natural could it be? It may degrade after several years, but it’s surely not “biodegradable.” Balloons are also the number 1 cause of death in sea birds such as Albatross and Mutton birds that have consumed plastic.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #balloons #balloonsblow #loveManly #litter #beachcleanup #Manlybeach

​Thoughts? Byron Bay Council had these on their beaches. Do you like them? Should we push for something similar here? Our beaches are non- smoking but we don't have any proper signage of that and no one has ever been fined for smoking on our beaches. What would you think works best to prevent people from littering cigarette butts in our beaches?
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #smoking #cigarettes #beachcleanup

It is not our rubbish but it is our planet.
Join us for a beach clean up the last Sunday of the month at 10am on the northern beaches. See our website for all details: www.northernbeachescleanupcrew.com
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup

Not all heroes wear capes.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup

If you haven't heard of "greenwashing" before, it's the concept of corporations and businesses making their products or practices seem more environmentally "green" than they really are.
According to the Korea Herald, a Facebook member posted in the group “No Plastic Shopping” that they felt betray "betrayed" when they discovered the plastic bottle inside, and filed a complaint of greenwashing against the firm. After plenty of criticism the firm clarified that the "Hello, I'm a paper bottle" label only referred to the paper bottle around the plastic bottle.
"This product is called 'paper bottle' to make it easier to explain the role of paper labels wrapping outside of the bottle," a spokesperson for Innisfree told BBC News. "However we understand that the entire container can be seen as paper material because of the product name. We are deeply sorry for the confusion caused and will try to deliver more accurate information to you."
The company added that the inner bottle uses 51.8 percent less plastic than conventional packaging.
What other greenwashing products do you know of?
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #greenwashing #plastic #saynotoplastic #plasticfree