David Heska, 29, from Tanilba Bay has started a campaign to clean up Stockton Beach and is reaching out to the land owners, the Worimi Conservation Lands, various stakeholders including tour operators, government departments, Port Stephens Council and beach users to buy in on the idea.

Mr Heska said that while he had been shocked to see the amount of rubbish, broken fences and abandoned signs littering the beach, he was optimistic that Stockton, with a little more care and attention, could again be a world attraction.

He called for a more thorough education and awareness program in schools, heavy penalties and fines for irresponsible dumpers and a rewards system for those who do the right thing.

“We need to educate people of all ages that it is a good thing to pick up other people’s trash, as well as the rubbish that is washed up from the ocean,” Mr Heska said.

“Park rangers should be given the authority to order beach users to clean up any rubbish accumulated near their vehicles, or face on the spot fines. 

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“At the same time there should be positive reinforcement and rewards for those who do the right thing. People who can show evidence of having cleaned up their rubbish can be rewarded with a free weekend pass and an environmentally-friendly sticker saying ‘we love our beach’.

“Another thought is investing in a Sandboni or a beach rake, which could clean an entire beach over the course of a week or so.”

Mr Heska said that he was heartened to see Tin City being maintained as the true essence of what Stockton Beach is all about.

“As you walk around you notice the lack of rubbish and how tidy the area is, rather beautiful,” he said.

“This is a very special place that has been a fishermen’s sanctuary for over a century, and boasting a history of a small fishing community long before the land was claimed as national park.They take good care of the area.”

Mr Heska said that he learned to drive his 4WD on Stockton Beach, with his father always enforcing the importance of “taking your rubbish with you when you leave”.

“On Stockton I learned how to tie a knot on a fishing line, how to surf, and how to set up a tent in the sand. I developed a real love for the ocean and the land,” he said.

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“But coming home after completing a 16,000km roadtrip, where I surfed at over 40 different beaches and camped in many different national parks, I soon realised the deterioration of sections of the dunes.

“In some areas people have dumped full bags of garbage. There are numerous signs which have been abandoned and scattered and fencing that has been blown over.”

Mr Heska described the Gan Gan Road entrance as a disgrace. “The Anna Bay resort is an eyesore, it looks like a third world country scattered with decrepit buildings, smashed windows and covered in graffiti.”

The development is not part of the WCL and was approved more than decade ago by Port Stephens Council.

Mr Heska said that he was prompted to contact the Examiner after his travelling companion, a German photographer visiting Stockton for the first time, saw the need for a waste management infrastructure strategy. 

He hoped that the money raised from the increase in beach access permit fees could be put back into cleaning up the beach.

“The rubbish is not just washed up from the ocean, much of it has been left there by the few lazy, uneducated people who don't take their trash with them.”

“We live in a country that is surrounded by the ocean yet we treat it like a floating landfill. As kids we are not taught in the education system about the effects of our rubbish on the environment, and it is the marine life who are suffering for it.

“It is time Australia kept up with other coastal areas of Australia and overseas by promoting environmental issues and the idea of personal responsibility before they get out of hand. It is not too late but we should act now.”