Stef Barney

Tackling litter this Rugby Season

Stef Barney

Tangaroa Blue is working with Queensland Country Bank Stadium on a Litter Hero source reduction plan (SRP) as part of our ReefClean program and will be attending all Rugby League games for this season to help reduce litter at these events.

The focus of this SRP is on Containers for Change,  encouraging the public to recycle their cans and bottles in designated blue bins instead of having them end up in the general waste bins/landfill.

With many games left for this footy season, we welcome any volunteers who are interested in helping out at future games.
Please email tia@tangaroablue.org for more information or to put your name down.

ReefClean is funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and is delivered by Tangaroa Blue Foundation.

Greta Beach 2022 Group Shot with Rubbish
Stef Barney

Successful IOT Grant to help Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Island Marine Parks

Stef Barney

Tangaroa Blue Foundation is one of 17 grantees chosen to deliver projects that will support the recently proclaimed Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands marine parks.

The new marine parks protect 744,070 square kilometres of incredibly unique and ecologically significant marine habitats and species.

Tangaroa Blue Foundations “Indian Ocean Territories Marine Debris Initiative” will build on existing marine debris datasets and include the implementation of our robust monitoring methodologies so that we can work alongside the community and key stakeholders to measure the impact of policy change around plastics from a state, national and international perspective.

Tangaroa Blue Foundation’s WA Project Coordinator, Casey Woodward says “this is such a great opportunity to diversify the way in which we support and share knowledge with the Indian Ocean Territory community and other stakeholders to tackle key threats like marine debris to marine life and amenities. We have really focused the components of the project on capacity building and data analysis and we cannot wait to get started!”.

Some of the other complimentary projects that will be undertaken include:

  • Supporting the Christmas Island community to protect the iconic red crabs during their annual breeding migration
  • Restoring seagrass habitats to provide an ecosystem nursery for fish and other species
  • Surveying resident foraging sea turtles, their habitats, diets and movement, with a focus on green turtles
  • Researching and monitoring coral reef health and diversity, including comparing them with the diversity of reef species from other locations.

Tangaroa Blue are grateful to those that provided letters of support and volunteered their time to add value to our application. We are looking forward to the rollout of a successful programme doing our part to preserve and protect marine life in Western Australia.

This project was made possible via the Australian Governments Ocean Leadership Package supporting the Indian Ocean Territories (IOT) Marine Parks Grant.

Stef Barney

Rig Recycle Seeks to Reel In Victoria Fishing Litter

Stef Barney
  • Victorian fishers can now recycle their unwanted and broken fishing tackle.
  • Tangaroa Blue’s Rig Recycle Program collects fishing line, reels, sinkers, spools and spool packaging so it can be repaired, reused and recycled.
  • The program is supported by Sustainability Victoria’s Circular Economy Fund and will see 60 recycling bins deployed at key locations across the state.
  • The Australian Marine Debris Initiative Database shows fishing litter is one of the top 10 items recovered during community clean-ups.   

Read more “Rig Recycle Seeks to Reel In Victoria Fishing Litter”

Stef Barney

Ditch the Flick comes to the City of Wyndham

Stef Barney
Tangaroa Blue Foundation is joining forces with the City of Wyndham to launch this campaign which aims to encourage behavioural change in cigarette butt disposal amongst the local smoking population.
 
Litter data collected from 23 stormwater drains across the City of Wyndham during the Let’s Strain the Drain Project was recorded in the Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI) Database. The data identified cigarette butts as a main litter source and provided evidence for a source reduction plan.
 
Given the success of ‘Ditch the Flick’ campaigns in other locations, the City of Wyndham decided to implement this source reduction plan to address their cigarette butt litter.
 
Let's Strain the Drains April 2022
Stef Barney

Data from Let’s Strain the Drains project used in Scientific Paper

Stef Barney

In October 2019, we completed our first round of audits to show the types of litter entering stormwater drains and ultimately Port Phillip Bay from 4 different land use types (shopping centres, industrial areas, CBD areas and transport hubs).

Little did we know, that right in the middle of our 8 audits the COVID pandemic would hit and provide us with the unique opportunity to assess the impact of lockdowns on the environment.

The Let’s Strain the Drains project was funded by the Victorian State Government and delivered by Tangaroa Blue Foundation, Cleanwater Group and Sustainability Victoria with support from the Cities of Wyndham, Hobsons Bay, Moreland, Kingston, Maribyrnong and Greater Dandenong.

Many thanks to 100+ Tangaroa Blue Foundation volunteers who assisted in the auditing of the stormwater traps!

This research paper was led by Brie Sherow.

Read full paper here

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