Beach Litter ... the Great Australian Blight
by John Foss, Surfrider Foundation

Beach litter and coastal pollution is a major problem on our beaches.

From Torquay to Tweed Heads, check the high tide mark after the tide recedes and you will see a line of litter, cigarette butts, bait bags and all manner of rubbish running along the sand.

There are many parts of the coast where it is not safe to walk due to broken glass and some days you just get sick of the sight of cans and bottles lying amongst beautiful coastal vegetation.

After hot days and long weekends our beaches can resemble a tip and we only have ourselves to blame (what is worse is the fact that all this litter and rubbish can have a negative impact on marine wildlife. Cigarette butts and plastic bags can get in the stomachs of birds, fish, seals and dolphins. The results are distressing).

If we are to keep our beaches clean for everyone to enjoy then it is up to everyone to help out. A lot of people who live on the coast do a great job picking up beach litter during their daily walk. The hard part is telling someone to pick up a cigarette butt or coke can or plastic bag after they drop it.

In my opinion people litter along the coast because they are either 1. too lazy to take their rubbish home or put it in a bin and 2. we let them!

We can't rely on the authorities to police the anti-litter laws, they don¹t have the resources to keep an eye on what thousands of people are doing along our hundreds of beaches each day.

At the end of the day we as a community need to be do more.

Surfrider Foundation Australia has also been campaigning since 1992 for people to be more considerate of our beaches and marine environments.

It would be nice to go to the beach and not be confronted by a long line of litter along the high tide mark.

If you are interested in keeping our beaches clean get involved with your local Surfrider Foundation branch and encourage everyone to take their rubbish home and only leave their footprints on the beach.