November 2022 – Tangaroa Blue

Sustainable Bubble Tea Project Successfully Implemented in Melbourne

Over the past weeks, Project Coordinator Jane has been visiting bubble tea stores to deliver free posters and chat with store managers about the Sustainable Bubble Tea Initiative.

This initiative is a Source Reduction Plan (SRP) being implemented by Tangaroa Blue across Melbourne, initially focusing on the cities of Melbourne, Maribyrnong, and Greater Dandenong areas.

We have worked closely with @kinoicollection to develop educational resources in English, Chinese and Vietnamese that aim to inform bubble tea customers and staff on how to reduce their litter, promote the use of reusables and support businesses before the Victorian single-use plastic ban starts in February 2023.

The data on litter found in stormwater drains collected through the Let’s Strain the Drain project over the past 2 years, has provided valuable information on litter sources in eight local government areas across Melbourne. Bubble tea litter was recorded in significant quantities in the Melbourne, Maribyrnong and Greater Dandenong areas and highlighted the need to engage with this stakeholder group. KINOI, an innovative reusable bubble tea cup business, provided invaluable knowledge of the typical bubble tea customer base, as well as experience with introducing reusable products to the industry.

We will continue to audit stormwater drains located near bubble tea stores to determine the success of this source reduction plan and shortly launch phase two of the initiative which will promote the use of reusable bubble tea products such as cups, straws and carry bags – stay tuned to hear how you can win a KINOI bubble tea pack!

For more information or to download posters visit: www.sustainablebubbletea.org

For reusable bubble tea products: www.kinoi.com.au

Sustainable Bubble Tea is a project that aims to reduce bubble tea plastic litter surrounding Port Phillip Bay and to promote reusables. We hope to support Victorians for the upcoming single-use plastic ban in February 2023. This project is supported by the Circular Economy Communities Fund, delivered by Sustainability Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government. The project is delivered by Tangaroa Blue Foundation and KINOI with support from the Cities of Melbourne, Maribyrnong, and Greater Dandenong.

10 Years Supporting Bay Ok Day

Tangaroa Blue Foundation was recently recognised as one of three organisations to have provided 10 consecutive years of support to Dunsborough Primary School’s annual Bay Ok Day. This wonderful event that is enjoyed by up to 700 students on the beautiful shores of Old Dunsborough in WA’s South West is a favourite on the school activity calendar.

Bay Ok Day is a celebration of living in the Geographe Bay Catchment and an opportunity for the kids to learn about the beauty of the area and also about the key threatening processes that can impact this beautiful area including marine debris, feral animals and weeds. Several Tangaroa Blue Coordinators have attended the event throughout the 10 years we have been attending and all of our staff enjoy the opportunity to interact with different age groups and develop activities that are focused on marine debris and source reduction strategies.

In 2021, Project Coordinator Casey Woodward organised for Mermaid Nixie to swim into the Bay while the children were eating lunch. The idea was such a hit that Dunsborough P & C invited Nixie back this year for a special audience with the kindergarten children. It’s so important to find ways to engage all age groups and inspire them to care and protect the marine environment.

This is a fantastic school initiative and we are proud to present alongside many other environmentally focused community groups and organisations in the Geographe Catchment. We look forward to attending next year!

13-year run for the Darwin Harbour Clean-up

November 3, 2022 Stef Barney

The annual Darwin Harbour Clean-up occurred in October for the 13th year, successfully removing 1.78 tonnes of debris from the harbour. A total of 17 sites around the harbour were thoroughly cleaned from the Wagait Beach to Casuarina, with the Larrakia Nation Rangers playing an integral part in the organisation of the event and overseeing the many groups cleaning on these sites.

Tangaroa Blue Foundation supported the Larrakia Nation Rangers with the data collection and the results showed that our top five items were metal bottle caps, hard plastic remnants, broken glass, plastic food packaging and aluminium cans. Due to much of this debris being originally land-based, the clean-up is integral in preventing the injection of the debris into the beautiful Darwin Harbour marine environment.

This is a rare and special event and to see many different industries working together for the common goal of marine debris prevention is a fantastic sign that awareness of this global issue is coming to the surface. Combining industry with community effort has allowed the major success of this event for over a decade and sets a benchmark for clean-ups around Australia.

Tangaroa Blue would like to thank all participants, the Darwin community, industry partners, and the Larrakia Rangers for their tremendous endeavour.