This month we’re shaking up Cairns Green Drinks into a Plastic Free July special event not to be missed!

We’ll be running the usual Green Drinks agenda (free yummy food, drinks by donation, tunes and interesting folk) but with an added Plastic Free July flair:
– Plastic Free made food
– Demonstration of how you can run events plastic free
– Find out how you can join our Plastic Free network and keep the momentum going!

What is Green Drinks?
Cairns Green Drinks is an informal, monthly social event for people who care about conservation, sustainability and all things environment ran at the Cairns and Far North Environment Centre (CAFNEC). Hosted on the last Friday of every month the idea is for anyone interested to come along, relax and enjoy some good company. The aim of Cairns Green Drinks is to encourage networking, creativity and thought on environmental issues and projects. Green Drinks are agenda-free, non-politically aligned and everyone is welcome.

Free yummy nibbles are provided and drinks are available by donation.

Friday 27th July
5.30 pm – 7.00 pm
At CAFNEC 27-29 Greenslopes St, North Cairns.

Check out the FB Event : https://www.facebook.com/events/219764722168339/

We hope to see you there 🙂

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This year CAFNEC is holding a Plastic Free Evening to bring to you a night of workshops, discussion and support for your plastic free journey.

Plastic Free July went off with a bang the last two years as scores of Far North Queenslanders pledged to break old habits by choosing to refuse single-use plastic, and we are doing it again.

The evening will be divided into three hours.
1. Our first Workshop we will be introducing Carmel from No Waste, No Worries. Carmel is a Cairns local who has transitioned to a plastic free life. Carmel has a wealth of knowledge to share and will give you an insight into her journey and tips and tricks on what you can do.
2. The second workshop we will be taking out our beeswax, ironing boards and graters, and get hands-on making Beeswax Wraps with you. You will each get to take your own beeswax wrap home with you!
3. The last part our evening is designed to bring us all together to share stories, discuss ways we can continue to reduce our plastic consumption, and how we can keep fighting against the problem. Bring along any plastic dilemmas you have and as a group we can share solutions!

Plastic Free food, tea and coffee will be provided throughout the evening.
Thanks to the support and generosity of The Source Bulk Foods for providing delicious snacks.

FREE event, places are limited! Head to Eventbrite to register your name.

We look forward to seeing you for this wonderful evening planned!

An event supported by:
Cairns Regional Council
Cairns and Far North Environment Centre
The Source Bulk Foods
Cafnec Marine Response Team
ECOevents Cairns
Plastic Free FNQ
No Waste, No Worries
Plastic Free July

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Get outdoors, get creative, meet people and do your bit to protect our local marine environment!

Join us on World Environment Day, FridayJune 5th, to help launch the Cairns Drain Stencil Project.

Stenciling in action – Machans Beach Pilot

Our community volunteer group – the CAFNEC Marine Response Team – are excited to be coordinating this project with the support of the Cairns Regional Council and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

Our goal is to get the Cairns community working together to protect our waterways, ocean and reef by stenciling messages on drains to raise awareness of urban stormwater pollution and its impact on our local marine environment.

Click to find out more about the project.

Example of stenciled drain – Machans Beach Pilot

Event Details

Date: Friday 5th June 2015

Time: 10:00 am – 12:00 mid

Activities:

• Come along and meet the team
• Register yourself, your family or your community group to stencil drains in your local area
• Join other volunteers for a sausage sizzle and chat
• If you have extra time stick around and get hands on – help us stencil drains in Yorkeys Knob

Can’t make it to the launch? Register online to get involved!

Location: Yorkeys Knob (northern car park on Sims Esplanade)

Machans Beach Pilot

Acknowledgements:

The Cairns Drain Stencil Project has been made possible with the cooperation and support of the Cairns Regional Council and funding from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s Local Marine Advisory Committee. The Cairns Drain Stencil Project Team wishes to thank those council officers who have made this possible.

Can’t make it to the launch? Register online to get involved!

Contact us for more information.

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CAFNEC supports the introduction of a deposit on beverage containers like the one that has been successful in SA for many years. Reducing the amount of plastic and glass ending up in landfill and littering our land and sea environment is important to our future and putting a deposit on containers is an obvious action we can take right now.

We also support reducing the use of plastic bags and other plastic packaging, banning single use plastic bags and banning the use of microbeads. CAFNEC is part of the community advocating for change on plastic pollution and are working with local groups and national groups like the Boomerang Alliance to make this change reality in Far North Queensland.

Following recent announcements by the NSW Government that it plans to introduce a container deposit scheme CAFNEC and the Boomerang Alliance are campaigning for the scheme to be expanded to Queensland.

Stay tuned and join our mailing list via this website (right sidebar) to be part of our push to reduce plastic pollution in FNQ!

Where do you stand on the issue?

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In 2009, Target lead the way and announced its national ban on single-use plastic bags, with its Managing Director stating:

“We all have a role to play in reducing our impact on the environment.  One way is to reduce the use of plastic shopping bags in our business.  Target store currently issue over 100 million plastic shopping bags each year to customers and from next Monday this will stop.”

Due to a small percentage of complaints, Target has decided to reverse their environmentally friendly decision and bring back the plastic shopping bag.  This is concerning as it is the individuals and communities across Australia that will pick up the costs both financially and environmentally.

So what can you do to let Target know that you are not in support of them reintroducing plastic bags in their stores?

Click here to email Target a prepared letter by Queensland Conservation that lets Target know you do not support their backflip or you can send Target your own message to:  targetcustomerrelations@nulltarget.com.au

The post Oh My Gok! appeared first on CAFNEC.

Marine debris is a major threat to biodiversity worldwide as the impacts are rapidly intensifying.  More than 270 of the world’s marine animal species are affected by marine debris, but the full extent is unknown.  Plastic pollution has spiralled out of control.  It is estimated that 90% of pollution found floating in our oceans is plastic; of which 80% originates from land.  The most common plastic waste found during beach clean-ups are: plastic water bottle caps, plastic bags and plastic pellets.  In the marine environment, plastics break down into small particles that absorb toxic chemicals, which are then ingested by wildlife and thus enter the food chain.

Impacts on Seabirds

Flesh Footed Shearwater Skeleton
Photo By: Ian Hutton

Seabird is a general term given to describe any species of bird that spends a substantial part of its life foraging and/or breeding in the marine environment.  An estimated 44% of all seabird species are affected by ocean pollution.  In our own backyard, the Great Barrier Reef is home to approximately 215 species of birds, 29 of which are seabirds.  Seabirds have a major influence on island ecosystems.  Their droppings fertilise nutrient poor coralline sands, assisting the establishment and maintenance of plants on coral cays.On Lord Howe Island, the Flesh-footed Shearwater population has halved since 1978.  The reason found for this severe drop was due to plastics found in the adult stomachs, after foraging in the Tasman Sea, which were then passed on to their chicks during feeding.  In the 2012 survey of Lord Howe Island shearwaters, fifty chick stomachs were flushed and plastic was found in every single one!  On Heron Island, one-fifth of the Wedge-tailed Shearwater chicks were found to have ingested plastics.

Global Impacts

Plastic bags are said to be the number one man-made item in our oceans spotted by sailors.  It is estimated that there are 46,000 pieces of plastic in every square mile of ocean.  Plastic fragments are being found in even the most remote locations on earth.  There are now 5 ocean gyres (place where currents converge) in the world where plastic is rapidly accumulating.  Unfortunately, these gyres are also feeding grounds for marine wildlife.

The North Pacific Gyre is the largest and most well-known.  It is estimated that it contains 3.5 million tonnes of trash.  Research from Algalita Marine Research Foundation shows plastic fragments outnumbering zooplankton 40 to 1!  These fragments float just below the ocean surface making cleanup an incredibly complicated task.

Pollution control is necessary in order to protect our reefs from excessive sediment, rubbish and waste that impact critical mangroves, mudflats and inner reef habitats.

Be Part of the Solution

As a society and as individuals, we need to move away from the ‘disposable habits’ mentality and shift towards a more ‘sustainable habits’ mentality.  Thousands of disposable plastic products are made and consumed each day that make life easier, but are not a necessity and as such we could live without them.  What we use for our considered comfort can be viewed as a minefield for marine life.

So how can you be part of the solution?  You can be part of the solution by making some small lifestyle changes such as:

1. Take reusable bags with you when you go shopping
2. Buy products with little to no plastic packaging
3. Reduce the amount of plastic you use by bringing your own metal water bottle, coffee mug, bag, etc.
4. Recycle as much as possible
5. Refuse to use plastic single-use items such as plastic grocery bags, tableware and plastic cups
6. Support efforts to ban the use of plastic shopping bags
7. Support efforts to introduce container deposit schemes for both glass and plastic bottles
8. Help out with beach clean-ups!

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On July 11^th, 2013, Environment Minister Andrew Powell confirmed the Queensland Government would be considering a ban on plastic bags, but by the next day the story had changed.  On Friday, 12th July, Minister Powell said, “The Newman Government will not introduce waste or recycling measures that increase the cost of living for Queenslanders.”

We believe Premier Newman may have misunderstood the issue here.  The whole idea of a state-wide ban on single use plastic shopping bags is that customers are encouraged to bring their own reusable shopping bags.  This doesn’t cost customers anything!

The Think Outside the Bag project has been working to reduce the use of single use plastic shopping bags and push for a state-wide ban on these bags.  It has taken off in leaps and bounds since the official launch of the Port Douglas reusable bag in April this year.  This project has garnered tremendous support from the local community and businesses.  Additionally, politician Michael Trout MP has come on board with the project and has pledged his support for a state-wide ban on single use plastic shopping bags.

We would like to gain more support for our online petition and need your help!  Please visit our online petition and sign your name in support of a state-wide ban on single use plastic shopping bags.  We will combine our online petition with our written petition signatures and present this list at the State Roundtable in Brisbane in October. 

Our goal is to reach 2,000 signatures by August 31^st!

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During the past school term, Reef Guardian students from Port Douglas State School have been learning about the harmful effects of plastic bags and other marine debris, which are affecting their community. With the help from their teacher, Mr. Doug Barnes, these students have created amazing posters relating to this issue.

As Mr. Barnes explains, “The Reef Guardian representatives of the school were very enthusiastic to assist the community by raising awareness of the negatives associated with plastic bags and hope to see Port Douglas a plastic bag free zone in the future.”
Everyone is encouraged to go and view this wonderful art installation.

The installation is on display at the Port Douglas kiosk at 13-29 Mowbray Street (Community Centre) until the end of May.

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The new Port Douglas reusable bag has finally arrived and is now out in the community helping to reduce the use of plastic bags as part of our Think Outside the Bag campaign. Making its debut at the official launch to help with the campaign was the Plastic Bag Monster.  Did you know the average household collects an estimated 500 plastic bags per year?  Stay tuned for the next appearance of the Plastic Bag Monster in town near you!

To help keep paradise plastic bag free you can get your very own  Port Douglas reusable bag at the Reef Adventure Centre on the corner of Macrossan St and Grant St in Port Douglas for a $2 donation.

We are also excited to announce that currently 22 businesses in the Port Douglas area have gone plastic bag free with more businesses in transition.  Any business that would like to join the campaign are encouraged to contact Mindi Tonak, Project Manager, at sustainability@nullcafnec.org.au.

The post Port Douglas Reusable Bag Launch appeared first on CAFNEC.

This is a very exciting time for the Think Outside the Bag campaign as it is gaining a great deal of momentum.  It is moving to see the amount of positive feedback we’ve been receiving from businesses and the public alike.  Recently, The Cairns Post featured an article on the beautiful window art installment by local artist Kevin Mayo, located at Community Foods.  If you haven’t already seen this, please stop by and have a look at the illuminating display at 74 Shields Street.

The official launch for the campaign in Port Douglas is set for April this year. Leading up to the launch, we will be working with students at the Port Douglas State primary school to educate and then create posters that will be hung in shops around town encouraging everyone to keep paradise plastic free.
Our focus has also been on finding creative ways to communicate our message and encourage public participation. Last year we ran a competition for local artists to design an image for an iconic Port Douglas reusable shopping bag. We received an excellent design from winner Jenni Fox, who created a beautiful marine design based on Low Isles. We look forward to seeing these bags hit the streets of Port Douglas soon. Another project we have in the pipeline is a short animation showing the life cycle of a plastic bag, which we’re engaging a former JCU student to create. We hope to use this to garner a larger audience through online media and television.

On a state level, we are continuing to engage the Minister for Environment and Heritage Protection, Andrew Powell, to push for a Queensland-wide ban.  South Australia, the Northern Territory, and the ACT have already banned single-use plastic shopping bags, and we think Queensland should be next. You too can assist putting Queensland on the map by signing our online petition at www.cafnec.org.au and help to keep paradise plastic free!

So what can you do?

• Support a Queensland-wide ban on plastic bags by signing your pledge

to go plastic bag free at www.cafnec.org.au.

• Keep a spare, reusable shopping bag in your handbag or wallet, and a few in the car.
• Avoid using plastic shopping bags and try to minimise your use of other plastic bags, such as for weighing fruit and vegetables.
• Contact your local shops or supermarket to encourage them to phase out the use of plastic bags.

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