Our Clean Up program removes litter and debris from our waterways to protect people, wildlife and ecosystems in South East Queensland.

Every year, our Clean Up Program hits the water to remove tonnes of litter and debris from South East Queensland waterways.

Our Clean Up crew collects floating and bank-bound litter from targeted waterways, removing the waste before it flows out into Moreton Bay where it can do untold harm to our marine wildlife and ecosystems.

It is a frontline project in the fight against litter pollution in South East Queensland’s waterways.

Once the waste has been collected, we analyse and categorise it so we can better understand how, why and when litter is entering our waterways and work together to stop litter at the source.

The aim of the program is to:

• Collect and analyse litter from South East Queensland’s waterways.
• Mitigate the impacts of litter and debris on local native wildlife.
• Help deliver on local government litter removal action plans.
• Provide a platform for community members, industry groups, and government to work together to protect the region’s waterways.

In the 2022/2023 financial year, the Clean Up program removed over 60 tonnes of litter from targeted waterways.

This included:

• Over 50 tonnes of floating and bank-bound litter removed from flood-impacted and litter hot spot sites across the Brisbane, Bremer, Logan, and Caboolture Rivers.
• Over 10 tonnes of post-flood marine debris removed from coastal waters and banks of Quandamooka Country in partnership with the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation.

The most common items removed were plastic food wrapping, polystyrene, and small plastic pieces.

When the 2022 floods hit South East Queensland in March we were able to immediately respond.

To help clean up the enormous amounts of litter and debris that were strewn across our catchments due to the floods, Healthy Land & Water immediately stood up an expanded program and got to work removing harmful pollutants from waterways.

Immediate removal of these pollutants represents a significant threat abatement to marine and freshwater environments.

However, waterway litter is persistent, and ongoing efforts to remove pollutants from targeted waterways should be a priority for government funding.

Despite our best efforts, waterway litter and marine debris are still one of the most serious threats to oceans and coastal areas both here in South East Queensland and across the world.

It is listed as a key threatening process to vertebrate marine life under the EPBC Act due to the danger of animals being injured or killed through ingestion or entanglement.

Waterway and marine litter originate from many places, but we know approximately 80% is from a land-based source. This litter causes a wide spectrum of environmental, economic, safety, health, and cultural impacts. The very slow rate of degradation of most waterway and marine litter items, especially plastics, together with the continuously growing amount of litter and debris being disposed of, is leading to a gradual increase in litter in our creeks, rivers, estuaries, oceans, and on our shores.

Marine debris also impacts human well-being, including economic impacts, impacts on navigation, human health impacts, and social and cultural impacts. In South East Queensland alone, waterways are estimated to deliver over 10 billion dollars a year to the region’s economy through a range of services and activities including recreation, drinking water supply, tourism, and fishing.

This project is supported by Healthy Land & Water, through funding from Brisbane City Council, Ipswich City Council, Logan City Council, Moreton Bay Regional Council, the Queensland Government, and the Australian Government.