Report By Samantha Hobbs South Cape York Catchments
A big thank you for all those who contributed to the great Cooktown to Weary Bay Beach Clean Up on Sunday. Over 150 volunteers turned up to clean 7 beaches from Cooktown to Weary Bay. The enthusiastic crew removed approximately 2 large skip bins of rubbish as part of the annual community beach clean up.
17 volunteers at Walker Bay removed ½ a large skip bin of rubbish, about the same amount as last year; everyone managed to finish the clean up just before the rain set in.
At North Shore 50+ volunteers removed ¾ of a large skip bin of rubbish. They even found tyres buried deep in the sand and lots of floats that were recycled for garden ornaments. Thanks to Nick, Kevin & Tom for transporting everyone safely and removing the rubbish back to the mainland.
At Weary Bay 30+ volunteers removed rubbish from Plantation Creek to the Bloomfield River mouth. They were hard pressed to find rubbish; by the end of the cleanup they had only filled the bottom of the large skip bin, compared to two years ago when the bin was filled to the top!
At Archer Point 50+ Volunteers found less rubbish than previous years and everyone was happy about how clean the area is now. The Archer Point crew received spontaneous help from Traditional Owners holding a camp out at Archer Point.
Over 1/4 of the rubbish removed this year was recycled and sorted out separately. Thanks to everyone for their extra effort in sorting the recycling for our local school’s fundraising activities. Five schools are participating in a recycling competition; to date the schools have collected over 16,000 aluminium cans and plastic drinking bottles. This is no mean feat when all the cans and bottles need to be washed!
We can be satisfied in the knowledge that every year the amount of rubbish found on our beaches is decreasing.
Thanks to Queensland Fire and Rescue service for providing safety demonstrations to the volunteers ensuring people would be safe should they discover poisonous Aluminium Phosphide Canisters; two canisters were found at Archer Point and removed safely.
Special thanks to all our sponsors, supporters and organisers without you the event would not happen – Cook Shire Council, Yuku Baja Muliku, Cooktown Landcare, South Cape York Catchments, Tangaroa Blue, Cooktown Chemist, Ayton Butcher, Cooktown Bakery, Cooktown Hardware, Ice Works, The Bowls Club, Cooktown IGA, Cooktown Hospital, Cooktown Woman’s Association, Cooktown Coastguard, Police citizens Youth Club, and all the volunteers for their ongoing support and huge effort on the day!!
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