Clean Up Queensland this Clean Up Australia Day

Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon has encouraged Queenslanders to become involved in local activities for this year’s Clean Up Australia Day.

“I cannot think of a better use of a day than to spend it in the outdoors, in the fresh air, and helping make Queensland’s environment cleaner for all, including for our wildlife,” Ms Scanlon said.

This year’s Clean Up Australia Day is on Sunday 7 March.

“Queenslanders have made tremendous strides in cleaning up the state’s environment in recent years,” Ms Scanlon said.

“We’ve removed lightweight single-use plastic shopping bags from our environment, with billions of them saved from litter and landfill.

“At last count, we’ve saved more than three billion drink containers from the same fate, through our Containers For Change scheme.

“Additionally, new laws will soon ban the supply and use of single-use plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery, and plates, ending that waste stream which despoils the environment and harms and kills land and marine wildlife.

“The wonderful initiative that is Clean Up Australia Day, which began 31 years ago, not only removes rubbish and litter from our environment, it also reinforces to all of us the necessity of thinking twice before we discard our rubbish.

“It makes us ask ourselves ‘will someone else have to clean this up when I am finished with it?’ and helps us choose the best ways to dispense with the things we no longer need.”  

Ms Scanlon said the most recent Clean Up Australia Day report for Queensland showed that last year 141,229 Queenslanders volunteered to attend clean-up events, equalling 282,458 volunteer hours; with 3633 “ute loads” of rubbish removed from 1617 sites, the majority of which comprised plastics and glass.

Full details of the Queensland Clean Up Australia Day Report, and previous reports, are available from https://www.cleanup.org.au/rubbish-report

Ms Scanlon said Queenslanders could log onto the Clean Up Australia Day website at https://www.cleanup.org.au/ to obtain more information on how to join a Clean Up Australia Day event. 

“This website also contains important information on how we can participate in a clean-up activity safely, including the requirements to keep safe and COVID-wise,” Ms Scanlon said.

“I would encourage as many Queenslanders as possible to become involved in cleaning up our wonderful state next Sunday.”

 ENDS

Media contact:                      DES Media Unit on (07) 3339 5831 or media@des.qld.gov.au