On Sunday 2 March, Woodend Landcare volunteers gathered along Five Mile Creek. We worked between Jeffreys and Campaspe Park for Clean Up Australia Day. While some folk went hunting for litter, others focused on weeds. The low water levels meant we removed rubbish from areas that have been difficult to access in recent years.

Over 3 hours, 16 volunteers collected 6 large bags of litter. An inventory of the rubbish was undertaken to report to Clean Up Australia. This important step enables data to be shared including how much rubbish was collected and waste trends identified. A snapshot of our Woodend Landcare collection includes:

• Total number of items collected – approximately 650
• Most common item – soft plastic (261 items including about 120 chip wrappers/lolly packets)
• Aluminium cans – 39
• Glass bottles – 13
• Disposable coffee cups – 8
• Paper – 247 items, almost half of which were takeaway food paper bags.

The use of the area for recreation was recognisable from the rubbish collected:

• 28 dog poo bags
• 6 tennis balls
• A frisbee full of dog tooth marks
• A small pink tennis racket broken into 8 pieces

Happily, we did not find any soy sauce fish, syringes, vapes, cigarette butts, nappies nor other hazardous items.

We collected some plastic plant guards used by Woodend Landcare or properties that were flooded in 2022. Since 2022, Woodend Landcare has changed its plant guarding practices. We are now using biodegradable cardboard plant guards and weed mats for all plantings within creek flood zones. We have committed to not purchasing any more plastic plant guards. We will use plastic guards that are already in stock or are being reused. However, these are only to be used above the flood zone. If you are undertaking seedling planting on your property, you might like to do the same. Contact us if you would like to know details of the guard and mats we use. 

All rubbish collected has been disposed of appropriately, including recycling and composting where possible.

A huge shout-out and thanks to everyone that lent a hand for the day. Enjoy these few happy snaps from the morning…