Tonnes of rubbish

THE data is in and more than 400 volunteers collected over 12.5 tonnes of rubbish at this year’s Clean Up Australia Day events in Noosa.
Noosa regional volunteer co-ordinator and Noosa Shire councillor Joe Jurisevic said the collection was much less than last year’s 29-tonne record haul, but still represents a large volume of litter and illegal dumping.
“While over half the volume collected was from several different dump sites, over four tonnes of litter was still collected from streets, parks, rivers, and creeks across the region,” he said.
Items collected included a high percentage of recyclable items such as glass, as well as items that could be dumped at the tip including whitegoods, bikes and car batteries.
Cr Jurisevic said cigarette butts, tyres, mattresses and household furniture were again a major issue, along with take away packaging.
What is found in the bush and parks always surprises the Clean Up crews with a number of interesting finds reported this year.
Among the odd finds were lawnmowers and several bicycles in working condition found dumped along with an old kayak that was so long a truck was called in to remove it.
Cr Jurisevic said tackling 30 Clean Up sites could not have been possible without the help of volunteers, community groups, Noosa Council and local businesses.
Cr Joe Jurisevic, along with NICA president Tony Haslam said it was important to thank all those involved in making the Clean Up Australia Day such a success.