Four Wheel Drive Queensland with support from the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science held the 19th Four Wheel Drive Queensland Fraser Island (K’gari) Clean Up on the 10th – 13th of May 2019.
This year’s event had a total of 24 Four Wheel Drive Queensland affiliated clubs in attendance, 326 vehicles with a total of 754 volunteers, 599 adults and 155 children.
Over the course of 12 months prior to the event the 4WD QLD Fraser Island Clean Up sub committee which consisted of 11 volunteer members worked around the clock to deliver yet again another successful Fraser Island Clean Up.
This year we continued to improve the event experience and implemented several changes in improving communication and to manage risk associated with the event. Some of the changes included:
- Developed and implemented a new website www.ficu.org.au
- Developed and issued an event information guide which included all information relating to the event
- Implemented mandatory personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements
- Supply of sharps kits including training in sharps removal of all club trip leaders
- Partnered with Fraser Coast Regional Council who supplied and arranged disposal of 3 x 15m3 skip bins for event waste collected
- Purchased reusable waste collection bags, general waste and recycling bags
- Commenced transitioning to a plastic free event
This year volunteers cleaned 125km of the eastern beach, dunes and camp zones from Hook Point barge landing to Ngkala Rocks. This year at last minute due to unforeseen circumstances Ocean Crusaders did not attend this year’s event where Four Wheel Drive Queensland with the support of Tangaroa Blue continued to conduct a partial audit of the waste collected including capturing the total number of bags and the weight where this data is being recorded into the Australia Marine Debris Initiative database. This year a total of 1,259 bags of waste was collected weighing a total of 7,059kg which was 85kg more waste collected than what was collected in 2018. We removed the use of plastic bags for the purpose of waste collection and implemented the use of reusable biodegradable bags made from sugar cane as we commence transitioning to a plastic free event. Please refer to appendix A which details the detailed waste collected data.
40 volunteers were assigned the task of conducting weeding activities at Yidney Rocks and Burad Camp Zone. Unfortunately at last minute the weeding activity was cancelled without reason. We were notified of the cancellation on Thursday 9th of May, one day prior to the event which was challenging to communicate the changes to affected volunteers as many volunteers had already commenced making their way to K’gari or they were already on the Island along with the sub committee who had commenced event preparations.
We implemented mandatory PPE for all volunteers this year along with sharps kits issued and training to club trip leaders. This year a total of 4 syringes were located which were safety removed. This year we are pleased to report that we did not have any accidents / injuries sustained during the clean up activities.
The event saw the Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation (BAC) provide a Welcome to Country at Yidney Rocks which allowed an opportunity for volunteers to learn more about the culture and history. QPWS provided a wealth of knowledge and information to volunteers at the event check in, thank you evening and across the event weekend. Volunteers and their families thoroughly enjoyed the interaction with the Rangers and the interactive display which the children loved! Four Wheel Drive Queensland would like to continue to build our working relationships with Fraser Coast Regional Council, BAC and QPWS Rangers on K’gari to assist in track building and maintenance related activities across the Word Heritage Island.
This year’s Four Wheel Drive Queensland Fraser Island (K’gari) Clean Up was a resounding success. Four Wheel Drive Queensland would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved at QPWS for their hard work and dedication to ensuring the success of the Four Wheel Drive Queensland Fraser Island (K’gari) Clean Up and the committee looks forward to continuing to work with QPWS into the future.
Detailed waste collected data
Plastic Items
| 2019 (partial audit) | 2018 | ||
| Consumer Items | Cigarette butts & filters | 1,495 | 826 |
| Cigarette lighters | 262 | 741 | |
| Pens, markers & other plastic stationery | 131 | 4,913 | |
| Straws, confection sticks, cups, plates & cutlery | 393 | 4,637 | |
| Toothbrushes, brushes & combs, hair ties | 498 | 1,697 | |
| Toys, party poppers, ribbons, clips & similar | 891 | 2,397 | |
| Packaging Items | Bleach & cleaner bottles | 78 | 2,272 |
| Lids & tops, pump spray, flow restrictor & similar | 25,101 | 43,701 | |
| Person care & pharmaceutical packaging | 288 | 1,662 | |
| Plastic bags supermarket, garbage, ice | 1,075 | 2,175 | |
| Plastic containers non food (oil, sealant, chemical) | 2,806 | 1,977 | |
| Plastic drink bottles (water, juice, milk, soft drinks) | 13,927 | 6,442 | |
| Plastic packaging food (wrap, packets, containers) | 9,337 | 4,898 | |
| Plastic wrap non food (bubble wrap) | 314 | 1,362 | |
| Strapping band scraps | 603 | 2,223 | |
| Strapping band whole | 577 | 230 | |
| Fishing Items | Bait & tackle bags & packaging | 288 | 605 |
| Bait containers & lids, bait savers | 236 | 533 | |
| Commercial fishing remnants (float, pot, crate bits) | 9,547 | 844 | |
| Cyalume glow sticks | 498 | 1,835 | |
| Fishing line in metres (recreational) | 393m | 2,368m | |
| Recreational fishing items (lures, floats, rods, reels) | 157 | 946 | |
| Rope & net scraps less than 1 metre | 157 | 4,892 | |
| Rope (estimate length in metres) | 10,049m | 1,434m | |
| Remnants | Plastic bits & pieces hard & solid | 40,471 | 131,350 |
| Plastic film remnants (bits of plastic bag, wrap etc) | 3,934 | 20,674 | |
| Remnants burnt plastic | 183 | 617 |
Foamed Plastic (polystyrene) Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Foam buoys | 157 | 154 |
| Foam cups, food packs & trays | 1,049 | 1,668 |
| Foam insulation & packaging (whole & remnants) | 4,249 | 9,596 |
Other Materials
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Oil globules & tar-balls | 0 | 0 |
| Sanitary (tissues, nappies, condoms, cotton buds) | 131 | 1,534 |
| Shoes leather & fabric | 472 | 73 |
Glass & Ceramic Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Fluorescent light tubes and bulbs | 419 | 160 |
| Glass beer stubbies & pre mixed alcohol bottles | 1,127 | 1,468 |
| Glass jars & sauce bottles | 209 | 414 |
| Glass or ceramic broken | 367 | 4,211 |
| Glass wine, spirit and similar bottles | 393 | 577 |
Cloth Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Binding, thread, string & cord natural | 0 | 224 |
| Cloth, clothing, hats & towels | 0 | 562 |
Metal Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Aerosol cans | 104 | 235 |
| Aluminium cans | 1,993 | 2,471 |
| Foil wrappers, packets, bladders & alfoil | 52 | 4,382 |
| Metal bottle caps, lids and pull tabs | 78 | 2,182 |
| Metal fishing items (sinkers, lures, hooks, traps, pots) | 26 | 139 |
| Tins under 4 litres (food, drink tins and similar) | 0 | 733 |
Paper & Cardboard Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Newspaper, magazines & brochures | 183 | 158 |
| Paper & cardboard packaging | 6,793 | 1,487 |
| Tetra packs & drink cartons | 26 | 848 |
Rubber Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Rubber balloons, balls & toys, elastic straps & bands | 236 | 1,073 |
| Rubber footwear & thongs | 839 | 1,169 |
| Rubber remnants | 157 | 696 |
Wood Items
| 2019 | 2018 | |
| Brooms, brushes & paint brushes | 26 | 69 |
| Processed timber, pallets & other wood | 314 | 244 |
| Wooden confection sticks, pencils, matches etc | 0 | 173 |
Unusual Items Found
| Office laser toner cartridge |
| Used shotgun cartridge |
| Roof racks |
| Tyres |
| Car body |
| Boat |
| Satellite tracker for a fishing net |
| Syringes |
| Concrete block |
| Used fireworks approx. 4kg |
