Qlders reel in grants to tackle marine waste

The Palaszczuk Government has put marine waste squarely in its sights with $1 million in grants to help community groups across the state keep local waters litter-free – funding able to be delivered because of the ongoing health response and rollout of Queensland’s COVID-19 economic recovery plan.

Environment and Great Barrier Reef Minister Meaghan Scanlon today announced 28 community-driven projects will share in funding aimed at cleaning up the state’s beaches, rivers and creek.

“We’ve all seen the distressing images of what can happen to our marine life when people are careless with their rubbish,” Minister Scanlon said.

“While the majority of people do the right thing, it only takes a small amount of rubbish to have a huge ripple effect on our local ecosystems.

“The grants will give community groups, universities and organisations the funding power they need to clean up litter hotspots, rollout the latest waste-catching technology and educate the community.  

“Together with Queensland’s ban on a number of single-use plastics coming into effect in September, this funding will make sure the sunshine state is playing its role in preventing waste from ending up in the ocean – which sadly sees eight million tonnes of plastics leak into it globally each year.

Minister Scanlon congratulated all the recipients and said their work was invaluable to Queensland’s ongoing war on waste.

“By offering this financial support, it’ll also help free up valuable funding for some of these organisations to continue supporting local jobs.

“It’s just one part of the Palaszczuk Government’s record $1.4 billion investment aimed at reducing waste and improving the health of our local environment.

“Fortunately, because we’ve been able to manage the health impacts of COVID-19, not only are jobs and our economy recovering, so too is our environment.”

The successful applicants for this round of the CSA – Litter and Marine Debris Clean Up and Prevention Projects grants are:

• Positive Change For Marine Life Limited – $50,000 to reduce cigarette butt litter in seven key hotspots on the Sunshine Coast by creating signage and bin infrastructure, creating education programs, and performing community surveys, data collection, analysis and reporting. 
• Healthy Land and Water Ltd – $50,000 to undertake 35 days of boat-based litter and marine debris clean ups along the Brisbane, Bremer, Logan and Caboolture river systems. Debris collected will be sorted with data entered into monthly activity reports.
• Reef Catchments (Mackay Whitsunday Isaac) Limited – $50,000 to identify and reduce primary sources of litter in the Whitsundays by installing and maintaining 15 gross pollutant traps throughout the region. Six community events will be held to promote and educate the public on litter prevention in the area.
• University Of The Sunshine Coast – $50,000 to coordinate volunteers to map debris along 50km of coastline from Caloundra to Sunshine Beach through large-scale debris collection campaigns. Workshops will be held with the local community at the project’s conclusion. “Count and Sort” days will occur, and data will be entered into the Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI) database.
• Tangalooma Ecomarines Foundation Ltd – $50,000 to cover staff wages for a program coordinator to continue EcoMarines Primary and Secondary School programs across 78 schools over 12 months.
• Southern Gulf NRM Limited – $50,000 to undertake 24 litter clean ups over two years in Queensland’s southern gulf areas that are high profile, with high people traffic and with high biodiversity value, engaging community groups and volunteers.
• Seabin Foundation Limited – $49,993 to install four serviced Seabin units that filter rubbish and marine debris in the Manly Boat Harbour. Each unit will be maintained, monitored and debris emptied daily. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort” and data will be uploaded to the Pollution Index Platform.
• Central Queensland University – $49,928 to modify and install 18 “drain-buddies” across the Rockhampton and Livingstone shires to capture microplastics. Monitoring will be undertaken to determine where and when littering is occurring, which will support additional community-based litter prevention activities. Data will be uploaded to the AMDI database.
• Eco Barge Clean Seas Inc – $49,900 to coordinate 10 one-day marine debris removal trips to the northern islands of the Whitsundays engaging 200 volunteers. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort” and data will be uploaded onto the AMDI database. This project will also conduct a marine debris recycling program. 
  • Eco Barge Clean Seas Inc has also been granted $49,900 to undertake the same activities in the middle islands of the Whitsundays and a further $49,900 to undertake the same activities in the southern islands of the Whitsundays.
  • Eco Barge Clean Seas Inc has also been granted $46,000 to increase the organisation’s capacity to recycle marine plastic in the Whitsundays, engaging more than 300 volunteers at 50 recycling events. Funding will assist in hiring a dedicated Marine Plastic Recycling coordinator to expand the organisation’s recycling program and implement more efficient ways of processing plastics.
• Ozfish Unlimited Limited – $49,820 to educate recreational fishers and the broader community of solutions to reverse the litter trend of fishers in south-east Queensland local waterways. Activities will include installing 29 Rig Recycle stations and 30 tangle bins. This project will also conduct six “Wasted-Waterways” clean up events and a “Know your knots” fisher engagement campaign.
• Oxley Creek Catchment Association Incorporated – $49,039 to coordinate 16 waterway litter and debris clean up events within the Oxley River corridor. This project will engage 10 schools to encourage ongoing participation in clean-up events, develop a web-page and social media to drive community interest of clean up events and purchase equipment used for the events. These activities will engage volunteers from schools, community groups and local residents and all data will be entered into the AMDI database.
• Reef Check Foundation Limited – $48,000 to coordinate 24 clean up events at 10 key locations from the Gold Coast to the Whitsundays, above and below the water, engaging schools, community volunteers and trained divers. All data will be entered into the AMDI database.
• Noosa Integrated Catchment Association Inc – $47,450 to coordinate 12 clean up events on the riparian zone of Tewantin and Noosaville, and conduct four information sessions and workshop with local residents, community groups and schools with the aim enlisting more than 400 volunteers. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort” and data will be uploaded to the AMDI database.
• Climateforce Limited – $45,000 to undertake 10 boat-based clean ups of the Daintree coastline engaging community groups and volunteers. Marketing of the event will occur through social media, newsletters and flyers. Data will be collected, sorted and taken to local resource recovery centre.
• Parley Foundation Ltd – $42,692 to coordinate four 8-day clean up events over 20km of coastline at Cape Flattery, engaging more than 80 volunteers as well as conducting a marine debris recycling program. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort”, and data will be uploaded to the AMDI database.
  • Parley Foundation Ltd has also been granted $30,892 to coordinate two multi-day clean up events over 8km of Ramsay Bay, Hinchinbrook Island, engaging more than 110 volunteers. Each clean-up will involve a “Count and Sort” with data uploaded into the AMDI database and a marine debris recycling program. A comprehensive education presentation during the events will also occur.
• Northern Gulf Resource Management Group Ltd – $42,170 to assist northern gulf residents prepare for the legislated ban on single-use plastics and minimise their waste generation. This will be done by hosting eight Waste Minimisation workshops, three information sessions for local business groups, and advertising through promotional posters, newsletters, websites and social media pages.
• Tourism Noosa Ltd – $39,500 to employ a Sustainable Events Officer for 12 months to work in Noosa events to monitor and encourage a reduction in plastic use.
• Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation Registered Native Title Body Corporate (RNTBC) – $36,400 to coordinate a series of monthly clean up events over two years on the Fraser Coast mainland, K'gari (Fraser Island), and on the islands and waters of the Great Sandy Strait, engaging more than 120 volunteers. The activities will be both land and boat-based and engage schools, community groups and volunteers.
• Sea Shepherd Australia Limited – $30,650 to hold a 13-week long marine debris roadshow conducting 16 community educational outreach and clean ups across key beach and river locations in south-east Queensland. Data will be uploaded to the AMDI database.
• B4c-bulimba Creek Catchment Co-ordinating Committee – $16,091 to coordinate 13 clean up events at the Bulimba Creek Oxbow and Gibson Island/Aquarium Passage, engaging more than 50 volunteers. All data will be entered into the AMDI database.
• Ocean Crusaders Foundation Ltd – $15,625 to coordinate 25 days of clean up events on a landing barge from Coomera River to the Redland Bay island region, engaging more than 125 volunteers. Each clean up will provide data on items removed.
• SAPH Vision Quest Association Inc – $9,958 to coordinate 20 clean up events on the greater Gold Coast engaging community volunteers. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort” and data will be uploaded onto the AMDI database.
• Jacobs Well Environmental Education Centre Advisory Council Inc (South Stradbroke Island) – $4,310 to coordinate four one-day clean up events on South Stradbroke Island engaging more than 10 volunteers. Each clean up will involve a “Count and Sort” and data will be uploaded to the AMDI database. 
• Bribie Island Environmental Protection Assoc Inc – $1,060 to coordinate fortnightly clean up events across 14km of coastline on the southern end of the Pumicestone Passage, engaging community volunteers by beach walkdown and small private boat. “Count and Sort” days will occur, and data will be entered into the AMDI database.

ENDS

Media contact: Francis Dela Cruz - 0420 592 078