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Another big rubbish haul from Lake

UNDERWATER volunteers spent International Clean-Up Day on September 20 hauling rubbish from Wallis Lake entrance. 

From car parts and bottles, to fishing line and clothing, the sheer volume and diversity of debris kept the eight dedicated divers extremely busy. 

They are all members of the Great Lakes Underwater Group (GLUG) which is supported by Great Lakes Council and Action Divers in Tuncurry.  Working in conjunction with the National Parks Associations CoastKeepers, GLUG members not only use International Clean Up Day to physically remove rubbish from the marine environment, they aim to raise awareness about marine debris and drive positive change. 

Drifting along the Tuncurry Breakwall from the Rockpool to the Tuncurry Marina they were concerned to find so much fishing line and tackle caught in the rocks and marine plants.  There was even a hand spear found with a dead sting ray still attached.  GLUG divers have reported this to local fisheries authorities as all spear-fishing is banned in the channel waters. 

In general, the light-weight fishing line seems to cause the most damage.  Long lengths were found tangled in seaweed and dragging over large areas of reef.

"The damage to marine life can be quite substantial with plants being pulled from the reef, and sessile shellfish and animals getting tangled in the process," GLUG member and Great Lakes Council Coastcare Community Support Officer Isabelle Strachan said.

Also of particular concern were large amounts of heavy gauge long-line with GLUG divers removing as much as they could but in some areas the current was too strong and the line too entangled to remove. 

Volunteer divers hope to return to the site in a few weeks and remove the remainder of the long-line which will be passed on the Department of Industry and Investment as proof of bad fishing practice.

Other rubbish collected included car parts, signs, aluminium cans and lots of shackles. 

Also observed, but not removed, was a street bin cover, complete with installation cement.  Council's waste services division will do their best to recover and re-install the bin as soon as possible.

This event was made possible through the Federal Government's Caring for Our Country program.

Plastic is drastic: ocean plastic facts

• 6 million tonnes of debris enters the ocean each year, 80 per cent of this is plastic.
• Plastic does not biodegrade, it photo-degrades, meaning it eventually breaks down into single tiny plastic particles called ‘plastic dust'.
• Small plastic particles mimic plankton which is a food source, when it is ingested it can cause starvation and poisoning.
• Larger plastic pieces cause entanglement and choking.
• More than a million seabirds, 100,000 marine mammals, and countless fish die in the North Pacific each year, either from mistakenly eating this plastic or from being ensnared in it and drowning. 86% of all sea turtles are affected marine debris.
• Plastic is now found inside plankton.

Contact details
Great Lakes Council
Tel: 02 6591 7222
Fax: 02 6591 7200
http://www.greatlakes.nsw.gov.au
council@greatlakes.nsw.gov.au

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