At this year’s annual clean up event on K’Gari (Fraser Island), 16 vehicles from the Bundaberg Four Wheel Drive (4WD) Club joined over 826 participants in helping to clean up the world’s largest sand island.
338 vehicles from 24 4WD Queensland Clubs, 39 sponsors and various support people attended the event, organised by 4WD Queensland in conjunction with the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service.
The Bundaberg 4WD Club joined in once again to lend a hand with rubbish removal, and BBQ duties at the Orchid Beach Trading Post and Driftwood Bar, who generously fed the volunteers on the Saturday.
The iconic island was cleaned from Hook Point to Nkgala Rocks and inland across an assortment of tracks, with attendees covering 110 kilometres in total.
Due to the island’s location, a large amount of rubbish is washed up onto its beaches.
Rubbish from the south bound current carries waste down the Great Barrier Reef from Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and beyond, eventually landing on K’Gari.
The recent Cyclone activity and floods from NSW also added to the mix, so there was plenty to collect.
Weather conditions had been favourable leading up to the trip, with showers packing the sand making for easier driving.
The final wrap up saw approximately 8,400 kilograms of assorted rubbish picked up by the participants.
This was taken to the collection skip bin sites to be sorted and provided a snapshot of the different items that wash up from various overseas locations.
The Tangaroa Blue Foundation joined the event once again to do the statistical count.
Tangaroa Blue Foundation is an Australian registered charity focused on the health of our marine environment.
They coordinate the Australian Marine Debris Initiative, an on-ground network of volunteers, communities, organisations, and agencies in monitoring the impacts of marine debris along their stretch of coastline.
“Mad Matt 4WD” also attended the event as host for the volunteers’ social function which kept the crowd entertained.
Matt has a huge following on YouTube and was also at the event to promote the responsible four-wheel drive community doing our bit for the environment.
A social function had been organised for those that had registered for the event on the final night at Cathedrals on Fraser.
The venue proved popular, as clubs came from various camp zones to attend.
Raffle prizes from the events wonderful sponsors were drawn, and it was good to see most clubs represented won a prize.
This event is not possible without the support of its sponsors and their products put forward for raffle prizes.
The Diamond Sponsor this year was Club 4×4 Insurance and the major raffle prize was donated by first time supporter of the event Kickass Products, with a complete 12-volt solar charging and management system worth $5700 going to the lucky winner.
After the event, various clubs stayed on to soak up the beauty of the island.
The opportunity to explore the world heritage listed site was available with drives to the various tourist hot spots such as Lake McKenzie, Kingfisher Bay, Eli Creek, and the Maheno Shipwreck to name a few.
Club members tried their hand at fishing, and some even got to catch their first beach worms, a skill in itself.
Planning is already underway for next year’s event, and we look forward to giving back to one of the most spectacular places we can go, so close to home.
