Hey All,
I've got a bit of a beef and I'm looking for a constructive way to do something about it rather than just bitching on the interwebs. We're pretty lucky here in Perth to have really clean beaches for the most part. You find a bit of garbage left around but, in general, not that much. But some of the beaches that don't have swimmers generally are looking pretty crap these days.

Example, Woodies. Wind/watersports enthusiasts are really the only people who use this place and it looks like crap. I know a lot of the garbage washes up or is left by undesirables that tend to congregate there after dark. I know that kiters/windsurfers aren't just throwing bottles, plastic bags, etc on the beach. Be that as it may, as the people who use it, it's our responsibility to keep it clean. Nobody likes to clean up after others but nobody else is going to do it.

After my awesome 2 hour session at beach one yesterday, i walked to beach 3 to chat with some mates. On the way back, I was empty handed so I spent a few minutes picking up the array of trash that has collected on beach 2. I wasn't halfway back down the beach before I had more than I could carry. I know a lot of kiters walk this stretch every time the go for a kite. I'd like to ask that if you are walking back along the beach and you have a free hand, please pick even a couple pieces of garbage. Also, if you see people abusing the place, like campervans leaving bags of rubbish by the side of the road, don't hesitate to remind them that this is our place and we all have a responsibility to keep it clean.

One of the big problems is that there are no bins at Woodies. Unfortunetly, for the time being, we have to take all this crap out in our car boots. If anybody has any knowledge on which counsil is responsible for this area or a contact there I can petition to have some bins installed and emptied regularly, i'd appreciate it. For the time being though, you could subscribe to this idea, the Two Hands Project. The basic idea is that beach users commit half an hour every time they go down for a session/surf/walk with the dog, to picking up any rubbish they find. Some are taking photos of what they collect and posting on the facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=529171848#!/pages/Two-Hands-Projectorg/111774942217552?v=info

Half an hour sounds like a lot when you are trying to squeeze in a session after work. It wouldn't even take that. If each kiter were to commit to picking up and packing out even one piece of rubbish every time they kite, it would be enough. I refuse to think that people who use the beach nearly every day, don't care about it. This is our place, whatever beach it is, let's take care fo it. I think this is a good opportunity to set a good example and show the kiting community in a good light.

I'm happy to help organize, maybe with WAKSA, a beach clean up. In the meantime though, it only takes a minute to pick it up on your way back to the car.