We haven't had one beach clean up that we organised throughout these years where we haven't found any abandoned fishing gear. Do you wanna join us for a beach clean up? See our event tab.
All plastic in the oceans is harmful to marine life, but one type of plastic pollution is especially deadly - Fishing gear.
Why is it more deadly?
Fishing gear is designed to catch and kill marine life, and it continues to do that even when it is abandoned or lost at sea.
One abandoned fishing net can cause years or even decades of death and destruction. Around 300 sea turtles were discovered dead in a single incident in 2018, entangled in a ghost fishing net in Mexican waters. We must put a stop to this destruction of life in our oceans.

#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #plasticocean #beachcleanup #seaspiracy

Have you heard of the "latte levy"?
According to AlJazeeraEnglish , places like Ireland have started to trial something called "latte levy" in a bid to change consumer habits and cut the environmental impact from the use of single-use plastics. The idea is that instead of giving discount for BYO cups, which so many lovely cafes are already doing, the customer would PAY for the luxury of using a single-use cup, similar to what we're seeing with plastic bags!
Janet Salem, who has worked with UN in developing sustainable policies for over a decade, suggest that cafes could, for example, charge 50 cents extra for single-use cups. In this way, we will be setting a new norm by positioning BYO cups as the default.
What do you think about latte levy and would you cafe start this instead of the discount? Someone has to pay for the disposal of waste... Let us know in the comments!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #takeaway #byocup #keepcup #plasticocean #trash #litter #beachcleanup #trashtag #plastic #saynotoplastic #plasticpollutes #plasticfree

A podcast about what we do and why we do it - AND what you can do
https://www.whatcanwedopodcast.com/.../northern-beaches...
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #plasticfree

Researchers from the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Queensland set out to look at how much microplastic was in all forms of rice available to consumers. Research has found packs of instant rice contain up to 13 milligrams of microplastics, highlighting the need for more to be done to limit plastic content in food. Lead author Jake O’Brien said they found regular uncooked rice had about three to four milligrams of microplastics for every 100 grams of rice in the samples they tested, while that jumped to 13 milligrams for instant rice.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #rice

In Sweden and other countries where the tap water is perfectly drinkable , there really is no need to use bottled water – a source of unnecessary pollution and waste.
A few years ago, Sweden's second-biggest city Gothenburg introduced a sustainability label – Kranmärkt – to encourage businesses and organisations to use tap water instead of bottled water.
This movement would quickly catch on in many parts of Sweden. Since 2017, the Kranmärkt label is Sweden’s national sustainability label for businesses and organisations that choose tap water over bottled water.
Kranmärkt – which literally translates as ‘tap labelled’ – shows that you take a stand for a better environment and inspire others to also choose tap water.
It is indeed a label, not a certification! So participating businesses and organisations are responsible themselves for maintaining the standards of the label.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #sweden #tapwater #kranmärkt #water #plasticfree

Congratulations "Crew" - you, me, us. We are all the "Northern Beaches Clean Up Crew" - the ones who pick up litter, the ones who mumbles under our breath when we see those pesky, small, fish shaped containers filled with soy sauce, the ones who refuses coffee when we've forgotten our keep cup, the ones who brings our own bags when shopping, the ones who knows that bottled water is way more expensive than petrol, the ones who celebrates without balloons and are the ones who always keep on going. You never give up! Congratulations to all of you - you have all been highly commended tonight at the Northern Beaches Council's Eco Awards. We are proud of each and everyone of you and what an honour it is to have made so many friends along this journey
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #loveManly #beachcleanup #plasticfree

Are you a jerk?
Remarkably, there was no sign of dog poo along the pathway between the Pavilion Cafe & Bar and the Warrnambool Surf Life Saving Club yesterday.
Could this sign be working???
It looks to us like some vigilante got sick of seeing all the dog poop and dog poop bags along this path and created their own sign. What a legend!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup

Thank you to ALL of you amazing people.
National Volunteer Week (NVW) is Australia's largest annual celebration of volunteers. From Monday 17th to Sunday 23rd May 2021
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #volunteer

In a river in the Danish city of Århus, a small machine called the WasteShark now autonomously sails through the water collecting trash, bringing it to shore, and then recharging itself. Soon, a drone will begin flying through the air to help: Using a special lens that collects data to be crunched by a machine learning algorithm, that drone can identify pieces of plastic or other garbage and direct the sailing drone to pick them up. The system can also identify oil spills, which the WasteShark can help clean up with a special filter.
While the small trash-eating drone isn’t new, the addition of the flying drone makes it possible to find more garbage more quickly. The sailing drone also hasn’t been used to clean up oil spills in the past, because without the drone overhead scanning the water, it wouldn’t be able to identify the oil.
This type of work isn’t a complete solution to our waste problem; stopping the flow of plastic waste into the ocean will require rethinking how products are packaged and sold and building better recycling infrastructure. But these types of tools can help governments better understand the scale of the challenge. And systems that catch trash in rivers, as the project in Denmark does, can be a final safeguard to stop plastic and other pollution before it drifts into the ocean, breaks down into tiny fragments, and ends up being eaten by fish or birds.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #litter #trash #beachcleanup #saveouroceans

We would just like to say how thankful we are for everyone who joins the crew and helps create awareness about plastic pollution. We couldn't do this without you - we are all the crew. We love meeting everyone and you all makes us believe in kindness and hope for our planet.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #friends #loveManly

We've now had 5 out of 8 states and territories commit to ban single-use plastics, and the differences are big. In addition to the plastics listed here, Western Australia will also be moving to ban helium balloon releases, microbeads and polystyrene packaging in the coming years.
PLUS the Australian Government has committed to phase out loose fill and moulded polystyrene packaging by July 2022, as well as expanded polystyrene foodware, oxo-degradable plastics, and PVC packaging labels by December 2022. One thing is clear - we have a long way to go! We still need several states and territories to get on board, and we need all jurisdictions to increase their ambition and phase out more of the lethal plastics hurting our ocean wildlife.
For a more detailed version, visit www.marineconservation.org.au/plasticstracker
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #plasticfree #beachcleanup #litter

Pre-peeled eggs and some spinach comes at a cost - you pay for the packaging. Buy plastic free!
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic #saynotoplastic #plasticfree

If you buy plastic free, you're guaranteed snake free lettuce. This is a juvenile Pale Headed Snake (Hoplocephalus bitorquatus), capable of causing a dangerous bite found in a pre-packed lettuce bag at Aldi in the Sydney suburb of Mosman. The snake has since been taken back to Queensland and released.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plasticfree #snake #lettuce #plastic #aldi #mosman

Volunteers don't get paid, not because they're worthless, but because they're priceless.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #volunteer #beachcleanup #loveManly

​This picture is from earlier this week. The photographer Em saw three dusky whalers in one dive and all of them had fishing gear attached to them - hooks, swivels and lines.
This picture is taken at Cabbage Tree Bay which is an aquatic reserve that covers an area of approximately 20 hectares. The objectives of this reserve is to: conserve the biodiversity of fish and marine vegetation, protect fish habitat, facilitate educational activities and to facilitate scientific research. More than 160 species of fish and approximately 50 species of marine invertebrates have been recorded in the Reserve. This is a 'no take' Aquatic Reserve, which means you are not permitted to fish by any method, harm marine animals or plants, or collect marine organisms whether dead or alive (including empty shells as they provide homes for living organisms).
We've never had a clean up where we haven't found any fishing gear. Around 640,000 tonnes of fishing equipment are left in oceans annually. Discarded fishing equipment can remain in the oceans for up to 600 years.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #fishinggear #fishing #beachcleanup #cabbagetreebay #loveManly #sharks
Pic: Em @chasingsummer03

We have been nicely asking supermarkets and producers to fix this excess packaging problem for DECADES, petitions, direct emails, customer feedback etc, many of us boycott plastic products, yet the problem GETS WORSE! How can we get shops to listen?
Jackie often goes to to Aldi. She unwraps her shopping and leaved the plastic packaging in the shop to highlight the excess single use plastic created by the food industry. The manager has spoken to her and she has explained her reasons for doing this. Jacki asked him to contact Aldi head office to request they review their policy on the use of plastic and he promised to do this.
What do you think works best?
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic

Happy Earth Day! Today, more than 1 billion people in 192 countries will participate in Earth Day activities, making it the world's largest environmental event. This year, in the face of global inaction on pressing environmental problems, we must harness that power.
Every day we have the opportunity to raise awareness and inspire people to restore our earth! Here is a list of 15 ways you can help look after our earth:
​1. Ditch single use plastic, recycle, and compost food waste.
2. Share social media posts from your favourite environmental/animal charity to help spread the word.
​3. Leave water out for wildlife (and place sticks in it for insects to be able to escape).
4. Sign a petition for a cause you believe in.
5. Say no to entertainment and tourism that exploits animals and harms the environment. ​
​6. Bring a reusable coffee cup to your coffee shop!
7. Donate to your favourite environmental/animal charity.
8. Conserve water. The less you use, the less runoff and wastewater that will eventually end up in the ocean. ​
9. Learn more about our earth & animals through books, documentaries and educational resources.
10. Bike more!
11. Eat kind by dining on delicious plant-based meals. Cutting out animal products like meat, dairy and eggs is easier than you might think! The U.N. reports that animal agriculture is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions, more than the combined exhaust from all transportation.
12. Shop kind by not buying clothes, cosmetics or items that use or test on animals or harm our planet. Shop secondhand for your next purchase or buy from a sustainable brand.
13. Arrange a fundraiser for your favourite charity.
14. Email or write a letter to your MP or local newspaper about an animal welfare or environmental issue you care about.
15. Turn off the lights! Conserve electrical energy by only using what you need or switch to renewable resources, like wind, water or the sun!
​#northernbeachescleanupcrew

We would just like to say how thankful we are for everyone who joins the crew and helps create awareness about plastic pollution. We couldn't do this without you - we are all the crew. We love meeting everyone and you all makes us believe in kindness and hope for our planet.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #beachcleanup #friends #loveManly

​We've never had a beach clean up where we haven't found any abandoned fishing gear of some kind; lures, sinkers, floats, hooks, lobster cages or fishing line.

Sweet Seraphina, the endangered Green Sea Turtle, was rescued by Australian Seabird Rescue Central Coast after she was found floating at a local jetty. She was brought to see the Wildlife Team at SASH Central Coast, where it was discovered that her intestine was full of fishing line, which was causing a blockage within her bowel. Seraphina was in a critical condition; however, she required an emergency exploratory laparotomy (ex-lap) surgery to save her life.

Following a thorough examination and extensive diagnostics, Seraphina was smoothly anaesthetised and prepped for the procedure. The first half of Seraphina’s surgery went without fault. Dr Ingrid was able to gently remove the sea turtle’s intestines from her carapace (shell) and, with the smallest of incisions, remove the entangled clumps of fishing line, all the while the sleeping sea princess not feeling a thing, but as the surgery team travelled further along checking the intestines they found, not one, but three bowel perforations that were damaged beyond repair. Their hearts sank as they concluded that the most humane thing to do was put the beautiful and very innocent creature in front of them to sleep. So, they did. And Seraphina never woke up.

Sea Turtles are an endangered species, with fishing line being one of their deadliest threats, and at SASH, they are not calling for people to stop fishing, but WE are all calling for people to fish responsibility: Use biodegradable fishing line; count your fishing hooks; and always clean up after yourself.

 Taken by SASH team
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #fishing #turtle #beachcleanup #litter #trash

​The federal government’s national plastics plan below.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #plastic

​Polystyrene packaging around whitegoods will be banned by the middle of next year and cups and food packaging made from polystyrene will also be banned by December 2022.
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #polystyrene #plastic #plasticfree

What kind of person are you?
A balloon picker or a balloon litter?
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. Balloons are the number 1 cause of death in sea birds such as Albatross and Mutton birds that have consumed plastic - google Lauren Roman doctoral thesis looking at the effects of plastics in marine birds in Australia and New Zealand to learn more.
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 businesses still using balloons as "advertising fun"?
#northernbeachescleanupcrew #balloons