Remember when we could all meet up and clean up beaches together? That was fun. We miss finding all weird stuff like sofas, dinosaurs suits and exercise bikes. We miss dirty hands, big smiles and all of us working together. We miss swearing when we find dead animals entangled in abandoned fishing lines and plastic. We miss our laughs, craziness and great conversations. We miss seeing the joy when the kids find more dirty toys to keep. We miss seeing how dirty and muddy we get just so we can get "that" piece of plastic. We miss seeing all smiles telling us how many pieces of Styrofoam balls that have been picked up "just in that corner". We miss seeing faces finding a dirty t-shirt and saying "I'll take it home and wash it and it will be just like new". We miss you helping us trying to pack everything in the trailer. We miss the conversations we have at lunch after our clean ups. We miss our friends. We miss YOU!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #beachescouncil #loveManly #friends

Imagine how much plastic we could save!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” ~ Jane Goodall
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #loveManly #friends #northernbeaches

Great idea!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #idea

It is now illegal to release balloons in Victoria
Read all about severe penalties here https://www.epa.vic.gov.au/balloons
Huge congrats to Karen at No Balloon Release Australia who tirelessly campaigned for years on this, a massive win and great collaboration with Zoos Victoria.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #balloons #balloonsblow #beachcleanup

What is the difference between degradable, biodegradable and
compostable bags? And which bin do they go in?

DEGRADABLE
Degradable bags are made from plastic with other chemicals added (including heavy metals) that cause the plastic to break down and disintegrate over time when exposed to sunlight and heat. If degradable bags are released into our environment they become quite problematic as they break down into hundreds of tiny pieces of plastic. Animals can consume the smaller pieces of plastic more readily than they would if the bags were still whole. It is also much more difficult to remove hundreds of tiny pieces of plastic from the environment than it is to remove a single bag.
Which Bin? Degradable bags should only be used for and placed into your general waste bin.

BIODEGRADABLE
Like degradable bags, biodegradable are often still plastic bags that have microorganisms added to break down the plastic.
Which bin? Biodegradable bags should only be used for and placed into your general waste bin

​COMPOSTABLE
Compostable bags are made of natural plant starch, and do not produce any toxic material. Compostable bags break down readily in a composting system through microbial activity to form compost. In order to be classified as compostable they must meet the Australian Standard for compostability AS4736 and will have this symbol.
Which bin? Compostable bags can be used to line your kitchen caddy for collection of food scraps and then placed into the green lidded food and garden organics (FOGO) bin. Don’t waste them in your general waste bin as they will not compost well in a landfill environment.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #plasticbag

A reminder that it is safe to bring your own cup! Check out this six step method for safe, contactless coffee - enabling reusable coffee cups to return to the take out menu! ⁠
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#northernbeachescleanupcrew #keepcup #takeaway #coffee #byocup

No matter where you walk, you’ve probably seen them: little stinky discarded dog poo bags. Sometimes they’re along sidewalks. They’re also in the woods or even tied from tree branches like Christmas ornaments. As no one really wants Mother Nature decorated with these smelly pouches of poo, why do people discard their pet droppings? After all, they went to the trouble of bagging it, why not actually haul it away?
Maybe the offender dropped off the bag with every intention of picking it up on their way back from the walk. But then they went a different way home. Or got distracted and totally forgot.
Maybe the dog owner had no plans on carrying a reeking sack with them on their lovely stroll at all. They figured bagging it was enough of an effort. Someone else can pick it up.
Or maybe bagging and tossing—particularly on a trail—is someone’s mistaken belief that biodegradable bags will quickly break down. Biodegradable bags can be made out of corn or petroleum and contain microorganisms to help break down the bag. But “biodegradable” is merely a marketing term with no standard or legal definition.
A study published in 2019 in the journal Environmental Science and Technology found that several bags that were marketed as "biodegradable" survived in the open air, buried in soil, and submerged in seawater for three years or more. Compostable bags, on the other hand, are made of plant starch. They contain no plastics and are generally more expensive. In the study, the compostable bag dissolved in seawater in three months.
Dogs are eating diets rich in protein and added nutrients that throw the ecosystem out of whack when their poop hits the ground - their poo must be picked up.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #dog #plastic

​Did you know that H&M recycles old clothes. The clothes don't even have to be bought at H&M and when you take them to their shop, you also get a 15% discount voucher to use within the shop. The closest H&M is at Warringah Mall.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #recycling #recycle #clothes #clothing