Take 3 launches new surf club program
A new environmental program giving Surf Life Saving clubs across NSW the unique opportunity to get on the front foot in the fight against litter and plastic pollution has launched state-wide, following an extensive trial period on the South Coast.
Piloted by Shoalhaven Heads SLSC, Sussex Inlet SLSC and Basin Community Nippers Clubs last year, the ‘Take 3 For The Sea’ Surf Life Saving Club Program empowers clubs and their communities to be part of the solution to litter and plastic pollution – an issue of global importance.
Through their new online resources and educational videos, the program aims to educate on the impact of plastic pollution on coastal and marine environments, and provide tangible, actionable solutions.
“To date, Take 3’s SLSC program has been delivered to more than 40 surf clubs around Australia, and has seen major positive impacts as a result,” Take 3 For The Sea CEO, Sarah Beard said.
“We’ve cleaned 1.7 million square metres of beach around Australia and removed 9,700 tonnes of rubbish from those sites.
“Take 3 expects to see these impacts multiplied greatly in the years to come, thanks to the accessibility of the new program’s online format.”
The Program is built around five key pillars – educating clubs on litter in the environment, teaching them how to run their own beach clean-up, teaching them how to create and apply litter reduction ideas, implementing litter enforcement, in conjunction with the local council and the Hey Tosser! Campaign, and the importance of data collection.
Clubs can commit to one of four levels – bronze, silver, gold and ‘Local Litter Champions’ – and will be supported by local council and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“The support from the EPA’s Community Litter Grant to take our SLSC program online is testimony to the huge success the Take 3 SLSC program has already experienced across the state, particularly here in the Shoalhaven, with the ongoing backing from the Shoalhaven City Council,” South Coast Take 3 Ambassador, Monica Mudge said following the successful pilot in the region.
“This program is a great way to connect with your local council. The Shoalhaven City Council supported surf clubs with their Take 3 projects by providing murals, signage and support.”
Newport SLSC is one of the first clubs to join the Program, led by Ironwoman and club athlete, Lizzie Welborn, who is also a Take 3 Ambassador.
Lizzie believes it’s important to be passionate about doing your part for the environment.
“At Newport, we are very passionate about protecting our precious beach,” she said.
“It has given us so much, so we want to ensure that we are giving back to it.”
Interested clubs can visit the Take 3 website at www.take3.org or email slsc@take3.org
About Take 3
Wherever we are, we are connected to the sea. The ocean provides us with the oxygen we breathe and the climate that sustains us. We need a healthy ocean for our own survival.
Plastic pollution is killing wildlife, devastating oceans and threatening the health of our planet. Plastic represents a disconnection. It’s a material designed to last forever that we often use only once. Poorly managed plastic leaks into the sea. The ocean is downhill from everywhere.
Through education that inspires participation, Take 3 is building a global movement of people who are connected to the planet.
Join our movement today.
#Take3ForTheSea
Take 3 believes in simple actions to address complex problems.
How can we stop plastic pollution from killing wildlife and suffocating our planet?
In 2009, two friends set about answering this question. Marine ecologist, Roberta Dixon-Valk and youth educator, Amanda Marechal developed Take 3 – an idea where a simple action could produce profound consequences. Joining forces with environmentalist, Tim Silverwood, the trio publicly launched Take 3 as an organisation in 2010.
Take 3 pieces of rubbish with you when you leave the beach, waterway or…anywhere, and you have made a difference.
The Take 3 for the Sea movement was born.
OUR INSPIRATION
The Turtle
Turtles are truly ancient beings. The oldest known fossil is 120 million years old, making them one of the oldest creatures to inhabit the planet. Turtles represent the continuous connection between land and sea. Their lives are a constant cycle of nesting on land before travelling the seas for thousands of kilometres. Female marine turtles return to their own birthplace when it is time for them to lay their own eggs.
Plastic pollution is devastating marine turtles through entanglement in debris and contamination of their food chain. When soft plastic enters the sea it has striking similarity to jellyfish, a main food source for turtles. Too many turtles are innocent victims of our careless consumption of plastic.
We owe it to the sea turtles to make plastic pollution a thing of the past. Take action now.
Take 3's new free online Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC) program
Take 3's new free online Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC) program empowers SLSCs and their communities to be part of the solution to litter and plastic pollution, an issue impacting beaches all around Australia and the world.
Through online resources and educational videos, the program educates SLSCs about the impact of plastic pollution on coastal and marine environments, and actions they can take to prevent litter.
SLSCs connect millions of people with the ocean, and therefore have significant power to help tackle an issue like litter in our oceans. Now that Take 3’s new program is officially open for all surf clubs in NSW, we are hoping to see the program grow around the state and ultimately the country.
The first 10 clubs to sign up to the new program will receive a free clean up kit, which includes gloves, clean bags, a sharps container and bin posters! Clean up kits are also available for purchase on the Take 3 website if you miss the free bundle.
For the full story head to Take3.org/news
This project is a NSW Environment Protection Authority 'Waste Less Recycle More' initiative, funded from the waste levy.
