Help us turn the tide against single-use plastics by supporting our ‘Bring your own’ campaign.

Help us turn the tide against single-use plastics by supporting our ‘Bring your own’ campaign.

Plastic is the biggest waste item found in the ocean according to the IUCN*, and is the largest threat to our marine life. Every year 5 to 8 million metric tonnes of plastic enter our oceans, and this trend is increasing. From the smallest fish to the biggest whale, plastic can entangle animals, and can cause serious harm, when mistaken for food.

 

Here in Australia it’s no different, with single use plastics such as bags, coffee cups, straws and packaging regularly found on our local beaches. Even in Melbourne, 1.4 billion pieces of plastic flow onto the surface of Port Phillip Bay every year from our local rivers**. These plastics can take hundreds of years to break down, putting our local marine life at risk.

 

We can all do something to reduce plastic waste entering our oceans. Help us reduce single use plastics in Melbourne by supporting our ‘Bring your own’ campaign. This campaign teaches about plastic impacts in our oceans, and is a focus throughout Sea life Melbourne’s daily talks and tours. We seek to educate, inspire and engage the public about the small steps of minimising plastic use. This includes actions including replacing single use plastics with reusable options such as keep cups, water bottles and bamboo/metal straws.

Let’s turn the tide against single-use plastics. Choose to re-use.

 

* International Union for Conservation of Nature – plastic debris in our ocean report

**Study by: Fam Charko, Marine Biologist, Port Phillip Ecocentre