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Northern Beaches Clean Up Crew
 Beer and soft drinks could soon be sipped from “all-plant” bottles under new plans to turn sustainably grown crops into plastic in partnership with major beverage makers.
A biochemicals company in the Netherlands hopes to kickstart investment in a pioneering project that hopes to make plastics from plant sugars rather than fossil fuels. The plans, devised by renewable chemicals company Avantium, have already won the support of beer-maker Carlsberg, which hopes to sell its pilsner in a cardboard bottle lined with an inner layer of plant plastic. Avantium’s chief executive, Tom van Aken, says he hopes to greenlight a major investment in the world-leading bioplastics plant in the Netherlands by the end of the year. The project has the backing of Coca-Cola and Danone, which hope to secure the future of their bottled products by tackling the environmental damage caused by plastic pollution and a reliance on fossil fuels. Globally around 300 million tonnes of plastic is made from fossil fuels every year, which is a major contributor to the climate crisis. Most of this is not recycled and contributes to the scourge of microplastics in the world’s oceans. Microplastics can take hundreds of years to decompose completely. “This plastic has very attractive sustainability credentials because it uses no fossil fuels, and can be recycled – but would also degrade in nature much faster than normal plastics do,” says Van Aken. Avantium’s plant plastic is designed to be resilient enough to contain carbonate drinks. Trials have shown that the plant plastic would decompose in one year using a composter, and a few years longer if left in normal outdoor conditions. But ideally, it should be recycled, said Van Aken. The bio-refinery plans to break down sustainable plant sugars into simple chemical structures that can then be rearranged to form a new plant-based plastic – which could appear on supermarket shelves by 2023. The path-finder project will initially make a modest 5,000 tonnes of plastic every year using sugars from corn, wheat or beets. However, Avantium expects its production to grow as demand for renewable plastics climbs. In time, Avantium plans to use plant sugars from sustainable sourced biowaste so that the rise of plant plastic does not affect the global food supply chain. Article by: Jillian Ambrose (The Guardian) #northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #savethisplanet  Take a creative day and make some bees wax wraps or buy them in a local shop or online. This reduces your amount of single use glad wrap.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree   WHY IT MATTERS what you throw into nature.
A simple fishing line lost into the sea can be the death of a dolphin. Eirik and his team met a pod of almost 200 Bottle-nosed Dolphins along the shores of Port Elizabeth, South Africa last year. A little later they saw that one clearly was struggling to keep up with his friends. His dorsal fin was cut off, but the hook and line still attached to his back. A closer look at some of the pictures he took a few minutes earlier revealed that several of the dolphins had fishing hooks and lines attached to them. The line slowly carves itself through the dorsal fin of the dolphins. Eventually the fin will be cut completely off and it is a certain slow death for the poor dolphin. This time it was in South Africa, but it could be anywhere in the world.... It is estimated that each year about 1 million seabirds and about 100 000 marine mammals are killed due to plastic pollution in the ocean. Feel free to share this post to help make more people aware of what throwing garbage in nature can lead to. Pics: Eirik Grønningsæter #northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #animals #wildlife  Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has - Margaret Mead
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup  The latest wheelchair recipient is Dorothea, who is from Grassy Park in the Western Cape, South Africa. She needed a heavy duty chair, which we were able to fund by recycling bread tags from around Australia. Got tags lying around? Get them to one of the collection points on our map : https://ozbreadtagsforwheelchairs.org.au/ or post them to us at P.O. Box 1164, Kensington Gardens, SA 5068.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #breadtags #plasticfree #plastic  Crew members go out of their way to get the litter because they know that every little piece counts. 🙏
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #plasticfree #loveManly  Three Coles Express single-use coffee cups in the gutter on Raglan street in Manly this afternoon but as far as we know there's not even a Coles Express in Manly. This is again evidence that single-use coffee plastic travels with help from people, the wind and even storm pipes to end up in the ocean. It is estimated Australians use 1 billion single-use coffee cups every year. That's approximately 2,700,000 paper coffee cups thrown out every day! You make a difference today by replacing that single use tea/coffee cup with a reusable cup.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic   If you buy your bread from a bakery, you often save a plastic bag. You can also bring your own bag with you and re-use it!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree  Want some new plants? Cut of some bits from your succulents and put them in water. After a few days, you can plant them. Doing it this way, you don't need to spend money on new plants and you don't need to come home with some plastic pots you don't want or needs.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree  Want to know more about what you can do?
Start change with the power you have: Full interview can be found here: Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2SQNCn9 Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2YCCejQ Google Podcasts: http://bit.ly/googlewcwd Anchor: http://bit.ly/2KTPLfp "Northern Beaches Clean Up Crew" was founded to solve an immediate litter problem on the local beaches in Sydney. 5 years on, Malin from Kobie and the Crew are leading the campaign against single-use plastic in their communities and neighbourhoods. Thank you to @whatcanwedo.podcast for the interview. #northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #beachcleanup  Please recycle, re-use and re-home your old or unused jackets to those that need it most. With an estimated 116,000 people across Australia classified as homeless, XTM and their Heat the Homeless appeal aims to give people an opportunity to donate quality, pre-loved winter jackets to warm those in need and keep the jackets out of landfill. All you need to do is drop your jacket off at a participating Heat the Homeless retail store. Once received, XTM partner with over 2,000 charities to distribute the jackets to those that need it most. The closest ones to the beaches (as we know it) is Anaconda at Warringah mall and Snowbound in Chatswood. For questions please follow this link:
https://xtm.com.au/…/takingres…/heatthehomelesscampaign.html #northernbeachescleanupcrew #jackets #homeless #help  Broken glass is something we find at all our clean ups. Animals out in the wild often cut open their paws by unknowingly walking over broken glass. They can also be impaled by glass, which often leads to death. Another common problem is wildlife getting their heads or paws stuck in glass jars. Now authorities are keeping a watch on a treasured Aboriginal site in Allambie Heights after late night revellers smashed beer bottles and left rubbish near rock engravings created before European settlement. No respect for nature and no respect for The Elders of this country.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #litter #rubbish  Do you maybe knows someone who could be our local Carter?
Carter wanted to close the food waste loop in his community, so he started collecting food scraps on his bicycle to create compost! Eight years later and his initiative has turned into a successful business that diverts food waste from landfills, creates healthy soil, and strengthens the bond of his community. Once the compost is mature, members of the program can receive a full five gallon bucket of compost which closes the loop of waste-- their food scraps turn into healthy soil which will nourish their gardens. Carter’s brother has even started selling the worms so that community members can compost at home. Learn more at carterscompost.com. Share if you want a bicycle-powered community compost program in your community! #northernbeachescleanupcrew #compost #community  A dead baby Blind Shark found with a rubber band around its gills. Elastic bands should be cut before thrown out. Who would have thought that an elastic band could kill a shark?
Millions of animals die every year because of our plastic pollution and waste. Cleaning up a beach can save the lives of thousands of animals. Not using single use plastic can save the lives of thousands of animals. Educating your friends about single use plastic and what changes they can make to their everyday lives to reduce plastic can save the lives of millions of animals. The change starts with you. #northernbeachescleanupcrew #sharks #plastickills #animals #plastic #beachcleanup This green sea turtle was found in Manly a week ago. It looked very weak and is currently in care. The cause of this turtle being sick = a balloon. With the oily fish Ella, the turtle has been eating under the watchful eye of her carer Rob, she has been able to pass the balloon - hopefully the rest of the string will come out on its own! The balloon is the cause of Ella having pneumonia and septicaemia! If you would like to help out, please donate to Rob to help with vet bills and food for Ella: https://www.gofundme.com/f/rehabilitation-ella-green-sea-tu… 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.” #northernbeachescleanupcrew #balloons #turtle #loveManly Pics: Australian Seabird Rescue Central Coast (a bunch of legends)  We're looking forward to seeing you all again, when we can have our clean ups back on. Until then, please behave like animals, legends. #northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup  We are afraid of the virus but we are the virus of Planet. For the safety of others and yourself, please dispose of your used masks appropriately. #northernbeachescleanupcrew #covid_19  Recycled can bird feeder craft. Clean and open your coffee can with a can opener. Cut the coffee can’s plastic lid in half. Paint your coffee can lid halves. Let dry. Decorate your can with colorful duct tape. Tips: Layer the tape on top of each other to create different widths. Cut yarn or ribbon at your desired length. Thread it through your can. Place the half lid on either side of the can. Fill your can with birdseed and hang outside. Project complete! #northernbeachescleanupcrew #birdfeeder Interested to know about the crew and how it started? Here's an interview about the crew and some tips what we can do to reduce our single-use plastic footprint. podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy9jYjExODVjL3BvZGNhc3QvcnNz&episode=NTVhNTg4NTMtYzQzMi1hNzFlLWY3ZTUtMjhhODhlODhiOTI5&ved=0CCQQzsICahcKEwiY5-CXhOXoAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAQ&fbclid=IwAR2NmDqYHY7wsCQMMTxPH_Y4-w29bx2UvMBLJRAXlZQFutwYBuuGA8Qsn-0
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic McGill University chemical engineering professor Nathalie Tufenkji decided to test tea bags after she was given one in a Montreal cafe that looked like it was made from plastic. She asked her graduate student Laura Hernandez to purchase several tea bag brands from Montreal stores. The scientists then tested them to see if they left any plastic particles behind. The results, published in Environmental Science and Technology Wednesday, far surpassed the researchers' expectations. "We were shocked when we saw billions of particles in a single cup of tea," Tufenkji told CBC News. In total, the researchers found that steeping a plastic tea bag at 95 degrees Celsius released around 11.6 billion microplastics and 3.1 billion nanoplastics into a single cup. That's much more than other foods and beverages commonly contaminated with plastics, Tufenkji told New Scientist. "We think that it is a lot when compared to other foods that contain microplastics," she said. "Table salt, which has a relatively high microplastic content, has been reported to contain approximately 0.005 micrograms plastic per gram salt. A cup of tea contains thousands of times greater mass of plastic, at 16 micrograms per cup." #northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #tea  Don’t forget to scrunch your Easter egg wrappers into a ball at least the size of a tennis ball then recycle.♻️ #northernbeachescleanupcrew #recycle  WOOD PALLET PLANT SHELF - What repurposing things have you done? #northernbeachescleanupcrew #repurposing  You take the rubbish out - where's out? It's still on this planet, right? Picking up rubbish helps, but reducing your amount of rubbish helps even more. Say no to single use plastic - if you use it once, don't buy it! #northernbeachescleanupcrew #litter #rubbish  |
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