There’s no need for a dustpan and broom, but a garbage bag and a pair of tongs just might do the trick to help ‘spring clean’ our city streets this Saturday for World Cleanup Day.
Led by anti-litter groups Beach Patrol, Love Our Street and Boomerang Alliance, residents from across the Melbourne region are encouraged to pitch in and pick up rubbish from designated areas around the CBD.
Annett Finger from Boomerang Alliance says Melbourne’s biggest street clean event will focus on reducing the spread of single-use plastics and highlight the need for more litter-prevention initiatives.
“We need to be smarter with how we use and recycle plastics. Waste is an insidious problem, but there are so many solutions. People power can really be so effective.”
Single-use plastics cause widespread environmental harm. Australians use around four billion plastic bags a year, with around 150 million of these ending up in our oceans and waterways.
Along with straws, bottles, lids and takeaway containers, this contributes to an estimated 8 million tonnes of plastic dumped into the ocean every year.
Marcus Mulcahy from Carrum Beach Patrol says the rubbish polluting local beaches is a constant concern for the bayside community. Their team will be swapping sand for cement this weekend, along with 450 registered volunteers.
“It’s not just large plastic packaging, but microplastics that are tangled in seaweed and washed ashore. For the 12-14 kilograms we do find once a month, there’s so much more still out there in the bay. This might be a local problem, but it’s a national and even global issue.
“We’ve all got a responsibility to care for our environment.”
(Just some of the microplastics that Carrum Beach Patrol collected in one hour. Credit: Marcus Mulcahy)
‘Spring Clean the City’ starts at 9am near the Southbank Promenade, between Sandridge and Southbank Pedestrian Bridge. See their Facebook page or the World Cleanup Day website for details.
(Featured image: Single-use plastics are a meal for Melbourne’s feathered friends. Photo: Alayna Hansen)
