Joanne Turner and her son Fox Welsh gearing up for Clean Up Australia Day at Obi Obi Creek in Maleny.
While many Australians will ‘step up to clean up’ this Clean Up Australia Day, Sunday, March 1, there are many who regularly embody Sunshine Coast Council’s anti-litter messaging promoting a clean Sunshine Coast and agree that ‘it’s in our hands.’
Community groups like Caloundra’s Night Eyes Water and Landcare Inc. and individuals like Cam and Mandy Spooner from Coolum, who routinely host their own clean-up events, will once again lead clean-up sites for this weekend’s Clean Up Australia Day, along with nearly 100 other sites across the region.
Last year, Sunshine Coast residents came out in record numbers to do their part for the clean-up, with 1630 registered volunteers – a 10 per cent increase on the 2018 year’s figures.
Local site coordinator, artist and mother-of-two Joanne Turner, who runs quarterly clean ups along Obi Obi Creek, hopes there will be another boost in volunteer numbers this year.
“I know most people want to do something to help, so by making it easy for them they will come out, and together we can make a difference,” Ms Turner said.
“We’ll be at Obi Obi Creek again this year, cleaning around town and Gardners Falls where most of the rubbish is found.
“We need to get it out of the river before it heads out of the Hinterland, and we know that the Obi Obi Creek feeds into Baroon Pocket Dam which supplies water to the Sunshine Coast, so we want to get any litter at the source.
“Last year, I heard of a little platypus, dubbed ‘Bandit,’ that had a rubber band caught around him. He was all the inspiration I needed to host my first Clean Up Australia Day event.
“I believe it’s not right that wildlife suffer because humans can be thoughtless, but I knew there was something I could do to help.
“Micro-trash is the worst for our wildlife, and sadly at our clean-ups, we see lots of bread bag ties, cigarette butts and bottle caps.
“I encourage everyone to come out and join a clean-up; with humans and waste, we are either part of the solution or part of the problem and everything we do affects the world around us.
“And we know there are several platypus that live along here in the Obi Obi Creek, so come along to our clean-up and you might even get to see one.”
Sunshine Coast Council is proud to recognise, raise awareness for and support the many amazing groups and individuals who lead our region’s clean-up activities, both on Clean Up Australia Day and throughout the year.
If you want to participate in a Sunshine Coast Clean Up Australia Day event, please visit cleanupaustraliaday.org.au and select to join one of the many registered clean-up sites across the region.
