4WD Clubs Help Clean-up K’gari

4WD QLD volunteers have been cleaning up K’gari (Fraser Island) since 2001.

The annual event is held across a weekend in May, with affiliated club members and event sponsors volunteering their time to clean marine debris from this beautiful World Heritage-listed island.

*350 vehicles participated in 4WD QLD’s annual K’gari Cleanup (Photo: contributed)*

Large quantities of rubbish are washed up onto the 125 kilometres of open beach. Some of this is local – travelling north with longshore drift from northern New South Wales and Southeast Queensland. But this is compounded by marine debris from the southbound East Australian Current (down the Great Barrier Reef), carrying waste from Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and beyond.

Despite some challenging weather conditions, with wind and sea fog, participants stayed in good spirits, with volunteers working together to help keep K’gari in pristine condition. But it was heartbreaking to see the polystyrene disaster continuing, with countless pieces washing up onto K’gari from the SEQ flood event.

*The job’s not done until the sorting is finished –volunteers sort litter with Tangaroa Blue (Photo: Bundaberg 4WD Club)*

It was another well-organised event with 23 clubs and 350 vehicles participating. Covering the beach from Hook Point to Sandy Cape, an astonishing 8.215 tonnes was collected by the 751 participants. A two-tonne increase from last year. After the event, many clubs extended their visit to soak in the beauty of K’gari, with fishing and drives to the various tourist hot spots such as Lake McKenzie, Kingfisher Bay, Eli Creek, and the Maheno Shipwreck.

Four Wheel Drive Queensland (4WD QLD) is the peak body for 4WD clubs and their members in Queensland. Advocating for members, 4WD QLD aims to improve recreational 4WDing, protect the environment, and encourage education and knowledge sharing whilst creating fun and active outdoor communities across Queensland.

4WD QLD partners with the Department of Environment and Science, Queensland Parks & Wildlife Service, Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation and Tangaroa Blue and would like to thank all the sponsors who have supported our efforts since 2001, without which this event would not be possible.