Get set to clean up illegal dumping in Oonoonba this Sunday

Date: Monday, 12th October 2009

Townsville residents concerned about the illegal dumping of rubbish at the Oonoonba wetlands will have the chance to be part of the solution this Sunday when a range of community groups hold a clean-up.

As part of Clean Up Australia’s northern clean-up event, Townsville City Council, OceanWatch, Marine Wildlife Australia and Sea Turtle Foundation are joining forces to remediate and preserve the important marine habitat.

Council’s coastal environment management officer, Adam King, said the Oonoonba wetlands, just 4km from Townsville’s CBD, were an important ecosystem that needed to be preserved for present and future generations.

“While this isn’t council land, we recognise the need to work in cooperation with State organisations that have jurisdiction over unallocated State land so we can tackle the issue of illegal rubbish dumping in Townsville,” Mr King said.

“We’ll be supporting the community groups involved in this clean-up and will be working closely with OceanWatch to locate bollards in the Oonoonba-Railway Estate area and prevent this kind of incident from happening again.”

The Oonoonba wetlands are a priority location for rubbish removal before the wet season which could wash the rubbish into waterways.

An estimated 7-billion tonnes of pollution enters the world’s oceans every year and causes untold damage to marine ecosystems and creatures such as fish, dolphins, turtles and sea birds.

While Australians have embraced some green thinking, such as ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’, millions of sea animals still die from entanglement or poisoning from rubbish and dumped chemicals like plastic bags, fishing line, balloons, cigarette butts and industrial waste.

OceanWatch project manager Rochae Cameron said people were yet to understand the impact of their actions, which could even be visited upon themselves.

“Dumping rubbish and chemical waste in sensitive environments like salt pans may seem harmless to some, but it is illegal,” she said. “It also contaminates areas that provide food and habitat for sought-after fish like barramundi and mangrove jack.

“As a community we can do so much to help our natural environment, starting with sensible waste disposal and getting involved in clean-up events.”

Anyone wanting to join this weekend’s clean-up can go along at 9am Sunday to Oonoonba Park where they will be transported to the site via a complimentary bus. Participants will need plenty of water, sturdy closed-in shoes, sunglasses, a hat, sunscreen and insect repellent. A barbecue lunch will be provided afterwards. For more details contact Adam King on 4727 9271.