North Cronulla is the latest Australian surf club to join forces with Clean Oceans who are attempting to turn the tide on plastics from entering our oceans by making our beaches and surf lifesaving clubs the “last line of defence”.
Clean Oceans is a prevention through education program rather than a clean up organisation.
The Clean Oceans program launched into five surf clubs in NSW in the 2017/2018 season, experiencing overwhelming support from the clubs, Nippers and their parents.
North Cronulla are the latest club to launch the program - which aims to educate children on the prevention of waste and the virtues of healthy hydration.
North Cronulla Nippers director Stuart Voigt said the club was proud to be the first in Bate Bay and one of the founding clubs across Australia to tackle the plastics problem by educating the parents of the future.
“Our Nippers are the future of our beaches so if we can break the cycle now through better education which is what Clean Oceans is all about,” Stuart said.
“Working with Clean Oceans leads the way for the other Bate Bay clubs on such a fantastic initiative educating our kids about looking after our beaches and the effects plastic products have on our oceans.”
Every surf season, an estimated 3,000,000 plastic bottles and cans are consumed by surf club members Australia wide, most of which aren’t being recycled.
Despite best efforts, most plastic is not recycled and a great number of PET bottles (and other plastics) end up in the ocean, damaging marine life and the natural environment.
PET bottles are among the biggest contributors to ocean pollution, and the biggest PET culprits are plastic water bottles.
It is predicted that by 2040 there will be more plastics in the ocean than marine life.
It also takes hundreds of years for plastics to degrade, if at all.
The likely scenario, one which is playing out already, is that this plastic will break down into micro pieces and be absorbed into the marine food chain, and eventually end up on our dinner plates.
Through the Clean Oceans program children learn the consequences of buying drinks bottled in PET; how to seek out less harmful alternatives; the effect plastics in our oceans has on the marine ecology; and how to make ‘smarter’ choices, and implement alternatives, which won’t harm our environment or our oceans.
Along with education, Clean Oceans have provided every North Cronulla Nipper with a reusable stainless-steel drink bottle, and they will be encouraged to refill their bottles from Clean Oceans supplied filtered and chilled water refill stations that have been installed.
Details: cleanoceans.com.au
