Meeting papers

Debris can include parts, rubbish and fishing gear from ships and fishing vessels, litter and rubbish
delivered via stormwater, general rubbish, building materials, outside furniture, and community
infrastructure from low-lying parks after floods. The Brisbane February 2022 floods deposited 18
pontoons from Brisbane River on Noosa’s beaches (see the Highlight Box below).

This debris is unsightly and poses a safety risk to beach users and wildlife, particularly when it is
obscured by storm foam. There is also a strong and growing body of evidence of the negative
environmental impact of marine debris through ingestion, entanglement, habitat damage and the
spread of alien and invasive species.23

Day to day dDebris is removed from the beach by community members or Council workers and
placed near or in the bins at the top of the beach access or removed to the Resource Recovery
Centre and landfill by rubbish contractors or Council workers. After storms, debris is removed by
hand or machine, and taken to the Resource Recovery Centre and landfill by Council workers or
deposited in beach access bins or home bins by community members.

Natural marine debris, natural wood, seagrass, seaweed, pumice -stone, vegetation and similar,
can also be deposited in large amounts during extreme weather. Natural debris can act as a useful
entrapment point, allowing the lodgment of sand and seeds that contribute to the rebuilding and
revegetation of frontal dunes after disturbance. They can also be significant habitat features,
especially during the early phase of dune rebuilding where little other cover occurs. Unless the
natural debris is posing a significant safety risk it is left where it is, to redistribute and decompose
naturally.


Marine oil spills
With increased international and domestic shipping passing along the shipping route along our
coast and increased extreme weather due to climate change, the risk of a larger marine oil spill
from a ship is also increasing. This was further increased during the Coronavirus pandemic by
reduced ship maintenance and reduced enforcement, and now with potential monitoring and
enforcement labour shortages. Oil spills from ships or from land-based activities may also occur in
the Noosa River and creeks.

Animals can be poisoned or burned by the chemicals in the oil – marine animals that come to the
surface to breathe or live on the surface or in intertidal areas are particularly vulnerable. Oil
prevents birds from flying or floating, and most oiled seabirds drown out at sea. Oil also prevents
fur or feathers keeping the animal warm, and they can rapidly freeze to death in cold water. Plants
and animals that live on rocks, mudflats, in the sand or on the bottom of the sea can be poisoned
or smothered. The effects of oil spills can be longstanding even on wildlife that survives -
reproduction success and lifespans can be reduced, the populations of threatened species
affected, and habitats degraded.

Economies and communities can also be affected. Fisheries can be affected by a reduction in
commercial species populations, contamination, or public perception about food safety. Tourism,
hospitality and accommodation industries, particularly where focused on coastal access and
amenity and fresh, local food can also be affected. Human health effects have been observed in
cleanup personnel and communities that live or work in areas affected by large oil spills.

Oil spills have happened near Noosa’s Eastern Beaches before. During Cyclone Hamish in March
2009, 230 tonnes of fuel oil, 30 tonnes of other fuel and 620 tonnes of ammonium nitrate (the latter
mostly in containers) spilled into the sea along the Sunshine Coast, affecting the coast from
Marcoola Beach (about 18km south of Peregian Beach) down to Brisbane River port. The spill
came from cargo damaged by other unsecured cargo on the deck of the MV Pacific Adventurer

23 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (2022). “Why is Marine Debris a Problem?” Available Online:

https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/discover-marine-debris/why-marine-debris-problem
Eastern Beaches Foreshore Reserves Management Plan 2023                                         Page 69


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