KPMG are a long time partner of Sustainable Coastlines and on 25 November 2016 a group of 53 rolled their sleeves up and got stuck into the well know litter spots of Rangitoto Island, in our beautiful Hauraki Gulf. KPMG’s Matt Davies did a great job of organising the large crew, and by 9am the volunteers were lugging BBQ’s, tables, sacks, food, water and much more onto the Fullers ferry in downtown Auckland.

By 10am the group was gathered and settled underneath Rangitoto’s tourist shelter where Sustainable Coastlines’ Fletcher Sunde delivered a health and safety briefing and a review of the causes, problems and solutions to plastics in our oceans. It was emphasised that people often don’t make the connection between dropping rubbish on the mainland and it eventually ending up on the beach, or worse, inside wildlife and into our food chain.

The team split in two, with one group, lead by Sustainable Coastlines’ Jodi Pretscherer, heading east toward Islington Bay while the other headed west along the bach-fronts with Fletcher. Positioning the cleaners along the right stretch of coast was a bit trickier than usual, with this time of year being black-backed gull nesting season, causing the birds to be very territorial and excluding the team from some stretches of coast.

The groups both did amazingly well, picking up a staggering number of small pieces of plastic. Rangitoto catches the full force of Auckland’s rubbish problem and this became very evident as the morning passed. In particular, the numbers of plastic resin pellets, the pre-cursors to almost all of the world’s plastic products, were found to be almost ubiquitous along the shores of Rangitoto. Wherever there was a patch of wrack (brown seaweed) washed up on the shore, there were sure to be pellets found.

After a couple of hours of heads down, the weather turned and the team headed back to base for a well-deserved lunch. As we rounded the point near the wharf we could smell the scent of delicious organic sausages on the BBQ’s! Chef Mathias and his volunteer assistance had been hard at it, preparing a delicious lunch for a well deserving team.

Post lunch the rain cleared and before photos were taken and the ferry was boarded, the rubbish needed to be audited – a great job for a team from KPMG, someone quipped. Another coastal cleaner had great idea – “shouldn’t the audit be done by our interns?” “Yes, it absolutely should be”, said someone high in the command chain. So the interns audited the rubbish while the rest of the crew enjoyed a bit of well-earned free time. Following the audit, photos and high-fives were aplenty before a beer or wine was enjoyed on the ferry home.

We want to send out thanks for to the awesome team from KPMG for their efforts on Rangitoto. Auckland, and indeed, the whole world needs caring corporates like these guys and we can’t wait to see them again next year. Big ups to Matt for the organisation from KPMG’s side – a big crew and an awesome day!

On a typical Auckland “four seasons in one day” morning we set up for the first ever Unitec clean-up of Oakley Creek Te Auaunga, the longest urban stream on the Auckland isthmus, extending some 15 kilometres.

With the support of ‘The Friends of Oakley Creek,’ and after a safety brief we headed off with a group of 10 staff and students and three Sustainable Coastlines crew. The starting point was the bridge close to Great North Road where the new Waterview Connection motorway.

As we worked our way along the eastern side of the river we pulled out 100kgs of trash, most of this was single use plastic, along with several tyres and a road cone. It will be interesting to repeat the clean up in 6 to 12 months time to see if we have managed to make a long term difference to the area.

What a fantastic day! The weather finally cleared and despite being a week postponed the Makara Coastal Cleanup was a huge success. This was the final event in our Love Your Coast Wellington Education and Clean-up project. 50 dedicated volunteers of all ages met at our basecamp at Makara beach on Saturday morning. There were many familiar faces from previous years, but it was really good to see plenty of new faces too.

After a Health and Safety briefing from Programmes Manager Oliver Vetter, the capable Meridian staff led the convoy of eight 4WD vehicles over the hill to Opau Beach on the West Wind Meridian Wind Farm to show some love to an almost untouched bay.

Those with young kids, or those feeling more like a walk in the wind, grabbed their gloves and bags and headed out around the points of Makara Beach to see what treasure they could find.

After only a couple of hours everyone returned for a tasty BBQ with more than 3,000 litres of rubbish in their utes and trailers. They picked up hundreds of kilos of fishing gear, buoys, crates and line but also the old culprits; thousands of pieces of single-use plastic, straws, cigarette butts, water bottles and microplastics.

Huge thanks to Meridian Energy as well as our sponsors Phoenix Drinks for hydrating us with their amazing juices, Whittaker’s Chocolate for the energy boost and The Makara Cafe handing out coffees for the volunteers.

Special thanks to Carly Anderson of Meridian Energy for always bringing such amazing energy and supporting our work.

Due to the nasty weather forecast for Saturday lunchtime we are postponing this event to SATURDAY 17 DECEMBER. Due to the nature of the 4WD tracks, we need to make sure that everyone gets in and out of the private beaches safely. Heavy rain and wind will not only make these tracks more difficult to navigate, but will make the day way less fun. Apologies for any inconvenience caused by the delay.

Please join us from 9.30am to 3.00pm on Saturday 17 December 2016 for a fantastic day of adventure and exploration, all the while cleaning up the beautiful Makara Beach and the coastline surrounding Meridian Energy’s West Wind farm. This wild piece of spectacular coastline, although well looked after by the locals, is affected by a regular flow of waste, so we are going to give it a good pre-summer clean-up. Meridian has been working with Sustainable Coastlines to raise awareness and support coastal clean-ups around Wellington since 2012.

Meet at the Sustainable Coastlines ‘Education Station’ container on Makara Beach at 9.30am, Saturday 17 December to sign-in and collect equipment, for a 10.00am start. From there we will split into teams and head out along the coastline on foot and by 4WD vehicle to clean-up the area from Makara Beach around to Ohau and Opau Bays.

Bring your own 4WD or jump in one that is provided to join the convoy. This will be a unique opportunity to explore the incredibly beautiful bays that are usually closed to the public where unfortunately, tonnes of plastic rubbish washes up.

Bring your own lunch or join us for a free sausage sizzle from 12.30pm at Makara Beach.

Participants need to bring:

• Sturdy shoes – this area has some challenging coastal terrain with rocks that can be sharp, loose and slippery. You’ll need closed-toe, sturdy shoes (such as sneakers, sports shoes or tramping boots).
• Warm and waterproof clothes – New Zealand weather is unpredictable, especially out here. Bring at least one warm top (ideally woollen) and a rain jacket.
• Sun hat and sun cream.
• Reusable water bottle (filled-up and ready to go).
• Camera (optional) – this is a unique and beautiful location and we would love to see your photos after the event.
• Your own 4WD (optional) – this is a rare opportunity to explore an amazing area that is usually closed to public access.

Any questions, please contact Project Manager Oliver Vetter at oliver@sustainablecoastlines.org

On the back of our highly successful planting day in collaboration with the Te Atatu Marae Coalition, Auckland Council and others, we’d love to get your help to finish off this kaupapa. While the day was a huge success, we still have a big pile of mulch that needs to be spread along one-third of the planting area. We got a lot done on the day, but we have some more mahi yet to finish this off.

If you have a volunteer day you need to use, or just some free time to help out in the local community, please do come and join us for a day or two of mulching. Mulching is really important to help suppress weeds and keep the ground nice from drying out over summer, which gives the 2,400 natives we planted the best chance of survival to next winter.

Many hands make light work so please join us from 9:30am on Thursday 17 and Friday 18 October at Harbourview-Orangihina Park, Te Atatu Peninsula (entrance off the roundabout opposite Gloria Ave).

Please register your attendance on the form below to help us plan. 

On September 28, 2016 T&G Global teamed up with Sustainable Coastlines to give some love to the Kapiro Stream, near Kerikeri, Northland. This event was significant as the last planting on the 2016 Love Your Water tour and the T&G teams from Kerikeri and Auckland pitched in with an awesome effort to get 803 native trees in the ground, contributing to the restoration of the Kapiro Stream.

The Kapiro Stream flows from the Kerikeri irrigation reservoirs through to the Rangitane River and eventually to the sea in the Kerikeri Inlet. In places the stream is shaded and healthy, while in others it suffers from excess nutrient and sediment load. Planting riparian restoration trees around stream and rivers helps to restore the health of waterways by stopping the flow of sediment, which reduces stream productivity, and reducing nutrient input, which can lead to toxic algal and bacterial blooms.

Denis Barker, the Kapiro Orchard Manager did a great job with his team to prepare the site for planting by clearing invasive species and laying down a bed of mulch to retain soil moisture and provide sustenance to the growing trees. Denis was also quick to quip about the efficacy of Auckland’s executive team, but we have no doubt that they were able to prove their worth!

After introductions by T&G’s Sustainability Analyst, Lissy Fehnker and Sustainable Coastlines’ Programmes Manager, Fletcher Sunde, the Love Your Water presentation and planting demonstration was delivered by Event Manager Te Kawa Robb before the 35 participants kicked into gear to get the trees in the ground. The team worked hard and were rewarded with an early finish to the day when all trees were planted by lunch time.

A huge thanks to T&G Global for allowing us the opportunity to work with them on this event and contribute to the ongoing health of the Kapiro Stream. Thanks also to DOC’s Rod Brown for his botanical expertise, Krave Catering for providing a delicious and rewarding meal as well as Kwik-N-Ezy canopies, Eighthirty Coffee and Hirepool for assistance with event equipment and logistics.

Building on the fantastic work of so many individuals, organisations and businesses active in this space over the years, it’s now time to launch the biggest collaborative and collective clean-up and education campaign this iconic city has seen! Port Moresby is our home and it deserves some love!

Sustainable Coastlines PNG (SCPNG), alongside principal partner NCDC, is coordinating the ‘Klinim Mosbi Campaign’ from Monday 17^th October – Sunday 13^th November 2016.

So… how does it work?

Clean-ups

SCPNG is offering ‘Free of Charge DIY Clean-up’ activities (i.e. bags, gloves and rubbish removal) for all registered groups, organisations, schools or businesses on a date of their choosing throughout the 4-week campaign.

SCPNG also offers a ‘Tailored Clean-up Package’ to any group, organisation or business that is looking for a high-value personalised experience. For an investment of 2,500PGK, this package will provide you with:

• Our highly regarded educational presentation delivered by one of SCPNG’s experienced staff
• Clean-up location Health and Safety inspection and briefing
• A tailored and accompanied clean-up activity for up to 25 staff (more by negotiation)
• Clean-up equipment (bags and gloves)
• Rubbish removal post clean-up
• Audited individually branded results for rubbish collected
• A selection of high resolution images from the day

Please click here to register your group, organisation or business.

Please click here to register your school.

Community Education Events

SCPNG is coordinating nine (9) public awareness events across NCD throughout the campaign.

The aim of these events is to educate NCD residents about the impact of littering plastic products on the environment and human health and inspire them to incorporate easy-to-adopt solutions into their everyday lives.

The events will involve delivery of these messages through art, theatre, music and high profile ambassador appearances. The 9 event locations are:

Schools

We would love to invite your school to be involved. From 17^th October to 11^th November 2016 we are offering your school (across all year groups) the opportunity to be a part of the ‘Klinim Mosbi Campaign’, by receiving an educational presentation and/or an organised clean-up.

SCPNG is offering, Free of Charge, to all NCD schools:

• An educational presentation delivered by one of SCPNG’s experienced staff.
• Bags, gloves and rubbish removal for a clean-up activity in or near the school.
• Online promotion of your school’s involvement.
• Evaluation surveys: So that we can provide our programmes at no cost to schools, we ask that your students complete our evaluation surveys – a series of three quick surveys that help us understand the effectiveness of our educational activities. These will be provided once our visit to your school is confirmed. Read more about our study on the effectiveness of environmental education here.

Please click here to register your school.

Sponsorship

We’re looking for caring corporates to get behind the project. Check out our event sponsorship opportunities below to see how your organisation can help out. We need to raise funds to cover essential logistical, Health and Safety, transport and training costs, and sponsorship is crucial to ensure this project’s success.

2,500PGK: Tailored Clean-up Package – (see above ‘Clean-up’ section for inclusions)

10,000PGK: Event Sponsor Package

We offer Event Sponsors:

• The ‘Tailored Clean-up Package’ included in the Event Sponsor Package
• License to Sustainable Coastlines PNG logos for use on web, marketing and other promotional materials during the course of the event.
• Logo on project report with a breakdown of all rubbish collected (great for CSR / sustainability reporting / marketing).
• Access and permission to use all event results, footage and photos (for any photos featuring school students approval must be sought from Sustainable Coastlines before use).
• Mention of your support on event media releases.
• Mention of your support during media interviews, wherever possible.
• Exposure through logo/brand positioning on:
  • This page: the official event page.
  • Event collateral to be displayed at all public events.
  • 3m x 1m sponsor banner used for photo opportunities throughout the programme.
  • Announcement and exposure of your organisation’s support to Sustainable Coastlines PNG’s social media network.
  • Promotional posters and flyers.
  • Further leveraging opportunities to be discussed.