Each year a dedicated group of volunteers from the Gladstone Community join forces, roll up their sleeves and remove debris from the Curtis Island beaches.
This year, the Curtis Island Beach Clean Up was held on 22nd April and once again proved to be worthwhile, with over 200kg of marine debris collected from the beach.
Over the coming weeks, Tangaroa Blue and volunteers will sort through the debris to determine the origin of the debris before being correctly disposed of.
Clean beaches are important particularly in the Gladstone Community for nesting turtles, shore birds and marine life. Gladstone locals take pride in the beautiful beaches and abundant wildlife but unfortunately when plastics enter the oceans, there is no wonder why there is a continual need to patrol the shores of Central Queensland.
The marine debris collected from these events are removed from the beach, and later sorted and entered into an Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI) database. Locally, this data identifies major sources of the pollution and can influence policy and decision making for the future of the Gladstone region.
The top five most common finds during the clean ups are plastic fragments, plastic lids, cigarette butts, insulation foam and plastic bottles.
Community Relations Adviser, Samantha Redshaw said it was wonderful to see the Community unite to partake in such an important initiative.
“It was a great opportunity to be able to come down to the beach and witness the enthusiasm of the local community in maintaining a clean environment”.
Santos GLNG will continue to support beach clean ups on Curtis Island and the Gladstone Region.
Santos GLNG Community Relations Adviser, Samantha Redshaw and Gladstone volunteers roll up their sleeves and clean up the Curtis Island beach.