VOLUNTEER beach cleaners will expect the unexpected when they tackle a summer’s rubbish at Leighton and Mosman foreshores next month.
“Last year we found a couch sitting in the middle of the dunes at Leighton,” Sea Shepherd marine debris campaign co-ordinator Marina Hansen said.
The four-year campaign highlights the rubbish, plastics and single-use garbage left or washed up on beaches and riverbanks.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWIt has cleaned 450 beaches across Australia.
Tonight, Cottesloe Council will consider banning smoking to stop butts polluting its beaches.
Ms Hansen said it was noticed that Fremantle’s South Beach had improved during the campaign, but the popularity of the clean-ups along Perth’s coast meant more volunteers collecting more rubbish.
Last Saturday, 91 volunteers picked up about 10,000 pieces of rubbish, including 4081 cigarette butts, on a 750m stretch of Port Beach in North Fremantle.
Ms Hansen said they found little of the industrial debris eroded from dunes in recent years, but two homeless people’s camps “full of rubbish” between Port and Leighton beaches required attendance and trash removal by Fremantle Council rangers.
“However, one of our volunteers who cleaned Scarborough Beach the day before said Port was much dirtier,” she said.
Volunteers can assist the Leighton and Mosman beaches’ clean on April 14.
Beach clean information is at the Sea Shepherd Australia Marine Debris campaign page on Facebook.