TWO Limestone Coast men are urging beach-goers to clean up after themselves to protect the region’s coastal environment.
Zebedee Schulz and Matt Howard are leading the charge in cleaning up Limestone Coast beaches, a habit the pair formed while visiting their favourite spots.
First exposed to public clean-up duties through school, Mr Howard said he had continued to pick up rubbish washed ashore over the last few years.
“It is a feel good kind of thing to have the cleaner beaches,” Mr Howard said.
“We have found a lot of netting and rope which has come off of boats.
“This includes shampoo bottles and all that sort of stuff.”
The duo recently spent three hours at Cape Douglas and Nene Valley cleaning up the coastline, leaving with a ute-load of litter.
“It is pretty horrid because this is our home and I think more people should be cleaning up the beaches when they visit or it should become a program for schools,” Mr Howard said.
Mr Schulz echoed his friend’s comments and said he could not help notice the amount of rubbish along beaches after regularly walking his dog along the coast.
“It started with just picking up a few cans, plastic bottles and some rope here and there,” Mr Schulz said.
“It soon became clear there is much more than what I expected. So I started parking my ute on the beach and doing a small area each visit.
“I have spent a fair amount of time scuba diving with over 300 dives here in Australia and the Solomon Islands, seeing a space underwater that only a small niche of people have experienced and the harm that plastic and discarded fishing products can do to our marine life and the ecosystems, the surface is only the beginning.
“Out of the plastic items such as bottles and other packaging, the majority had foreign labels,” he said.
“This either had to do with vessels in international waters dumping rubbish or simply strong currents moving plastic around the oceans and some happen to end up on our coastline.”
Mr Howard will join the Mount Gambier Marine Debris team for a community clean-up event on February 23, meeting at the Port MacDonnell foreshore at 10.30am.
Volunteers are encouraged to wear closed toe shoes, bring reusable gloves and tongs or a grabbing utensil.
The event will be single-use plastic free with those attending encouraged to bring a reusable water bottle and practice sun smart behaviour.
