Marine debris is a major environmental issue across the globe and is a serious threat to many marine species in the region, including our sea turtles and seabirds.
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It's an issue Hunter Local Land Services is eager to address in cooperation with Port Stephens and the environmental charity Tangarora Blue Foundation.
Last week we met with enthusiasts from around the country in Raymond Terrace for the one-day event to plan how we will reduce plastic pollution in our oceans.
The aim was to bring together community groups, organisations and volunteers involved in the monitoring program to share experiences and ideas, and collaborate in order to develop a plan of action for marine debris programs in the Hunter region over the next 12 months.
The Hunter Region Marine Debris Monitoring Program was established in March 2016 by Tangaroa Blue Foundation in partnership with Hunter Local Land Services to help prevent and repair the effects of marine debris.
With hundreds of volunteers involved, the program aims to identify where work is currently being undertaken to address marine debris, as well as identify where there are data and clean-up gaps.
The program relies on community groups and volunteers to help remove harmful debris from our waterways and beaches, and record information on what they collect.
This allows us to build a picture of marine debris sources in the Hunter, which contributes to a national picture of how big the plastic pollution problem is.
Once we know where our litter comes from locally, regionally and nationally we can all work together to formulate a plan to reduce and prevent pollution through education and management action.
The Hunter region has been an area of intense activity over recent years with 22 tonnes of debris removed and over 170,000 items recorded in Tangaroa Blue’s National Marine Debris Database.
Among the top 10 items recorded are pieces of plastic, glass bottles, cigarette butts, plastic drink bottles, food packaging and fishing line.
The ocean is a significant part of many people's lifestyles in the Hunter, attracting tourists to our region and contributing to our $2 billion tourism industry.
It's vital that we work as one to protect it.
To get involved in marine debris activities contact Brian Hughes on 0428 293 021.
