(AU) Sands of slime

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Sands of slime

By Lucy Carne

Sunday Mail

September 03, 2006

 

THE amount of rubbish being washed up on Queensland beaches is increasing,

and causing " appalling " deaths among ocean wildlife.

 

It is particularly evident on North Stradbroke Island in Moreton Bay, where

a recent large swell and tidal changes coupled with Queensland's escalating

litter problem has dumped massive amounts of garbage onshore.

 

Among the cigarette butts, balloons, plastic bags and rubber scraps seen

recently were the carcasses of dead animals, including a young turtle with

more than 40 pieces of rubbish in its stomach.

 

" It is tragic. The turtle was appalling as its whole stomach was jam-packed

with rubbish. I've never seen anything like it, " said University of

Queensland researcher Dr Kathy Townsend.

 

" Some tourists kept throwing it back into the sea thinking it was stranded.

But inside the turtle we found everything from balloons to plastic bags,

bits of flip-flops, metal and lots of hard plastic like blue water-bottle

tops. There were all these expletives being said as we kept bringing the

pieces of rubbish out. "

 

The juvenile turtle was from the deep ocean, a place where rubbish is " not

meant to be " , Dr Townsend said.

 

" Alarm bells should be ringing, because not only are we affecting the

animals around our coastline, we're now affecting animals further out into

the ocean, areas which traditionally shouldn't be impacted by humans.

 

" There is this mindset the ocean is so large we can put what we want in it

and there is no way we will fill it up. But the reality is we are starting

to fill it up, and we're killing the animals as well. "

 

This week staff from UQ's Moreton Bay Research Station rushed to save a

pelican which had its body torn open by discarded fish hooks, and a turtle

which was hit by a boat after its rubbish-filled gut caused it to float.

 

Science students from Dunwich High, on North Stradbroke, filled an

industrial bin in 30 minutes with refuse from the beach.

 

The rubbish is carried on currents from southeast Asia, dumped from

container ships, or flows into the sea through Queensland drains.

 

The beach debris increase highlights the state's escalating litter problem.

The National Litter Index recorded a rise of 25,820 items of litter in

Queensland from November 2005 to May this year. More than half of the items

were plastic.

 

Keep Australia Beautiful spokeswoman Liz Kearins said cigarette butts were

Queensland's worst concern.

 

" Since the new anti-smoking legislation we have noticed a large increase in

butts on the ground outside clubs and pubs, " she said.

 

" What people need to realise is anything you don't put in a bin ultimately

ends up in our ocean. "

 

http://www.news.com.au/sundaymail/story/0,23739,20336222-3102,00.html