Removing rubbish from the environment not only visually restores the natural state but also helps tackle the toxic impacts of plastic degradation and the risk of harm to humans and animals that come into contact with the debris.
Tangaroa Blue Foundation’s volunteers and Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI) partners have cleaned beaches and waterways at over 4,800 sites around Australia and removed more than 2000 tonnes of rubbish!
Our events range from monthly clean-ups to massive multi-day adventures in some of Australia’s most remote and polluted areas, and we're always looking for more volunteers to help.
Take a look at our event calendar or get in touch to volunteer with us
Do beach clean-ups really make a difference?
For some beaches, the rate of accumulation of new plastic items washing in from the ocean is rapid, and as a result, it can sometimes feel hopeless to collect and remove plastics when the beach becomes covered in debris only a few weeks later.
However, even in instances such as this, beach clean-ups continue to make a difference to local communities and species conservation.
Most importantly, we collect data on what we find to support scientific research and inform initiatives to target marine debris at its source.
Beyond collecting data, the clean-ups themselves play a bigger role than you might think...
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Clean-up events bring people together for a shared purpose, creating a sense of community and building networks of compassionate, supportive people.
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Clean-ups also remove large items that could trap or entangle species such as sea turtles and marine crabs.
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Clean-ups remove accumulating debris, which can create a barrier that negatively impacts sediment condition through reducing sunlight and altering humidity (this can create "dead zones" of habitat).
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Of course, piles of debris are also unsightly and can negatively impact tourism or the ability of the local community to connect with nature.
Pictured: Volunteers on the Cocos Keeling Islands attempting to remove large fishing gear items from the beach to avoid wildlife entanglement.