A community-led revegetation project is underway at Bells Beach thanks to a generous grant from Patagonia. Surfers Appreciating the Natural Environment (SANE) and Parks Victoria were awarded the $10,000 in funding to work in partnership on the project at the Southside carpark.

surf coast times 20200716 front page

Microplastics are known as the silent killers of the sea

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 31 August, 2017 - Surfrider Foundation Surf Coast have launched an eight minute education video which highlights the presence of Microplastics in Australia and globally.

"Microplastics - The Silent Killers In Our Seas" is one of the first education videos in Australia designed to inform surfers and the broader community about the threats of Microplastic in our oceans and waterways.

The video was produced by Torquay filmaker John Foss: “Microplastics are the silent killers in our oceans. We know that each day thousands of seabirds and marine creatures die from ingesting plastic. This video highlights the presence of microplastic and other plastics at Thompsons Creek near Torquay.

(Image Source: Nick Murray)

Wednesday, 17 June 2015 Anna Salleh - www.abc.net.au

Seabird dive The global seabird population may have fallen by almost 70 per cent since 1950, a new study suggests.

The study, published recently in PLOS ONE, analysed data on 162 species, representing 19 per cent of the global seabird population.
They found the population of those species had declined overall by 69.7 per cent between 1950 and 2010.
"It's an awful lot," says co-author ecologist Dr Edd Hammill of the University of Technology, Sydney.
"The level of decline is considerably greater than what we were expecting."
The researchers argue this finding can be extrapolated to the global seabird population because the sample used was large and all the world's ecosystems were represented.

For the last 18 months Surf Coast Environmental Group, Surfers Appreciating Natural Environment (SANE) have been working with Coastcare, Parks Victoria and other groups to produce an educational film that showcases the natural beauty at Bells Beach and the Point Addis Marine National Park.

Submission to the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council by Graeme Stockton and Charles Brooks (on behalf of the SANE Executive Committee).

Download SANE Marine Parks Submission Feb 2013 (PDF, 314KB)

Late last week we learnt that hired corporate lobbyists are in Canberra right now having meeting after meeting with OUR Members of Parliament to prevent the declaration of sanctuaries for our South West marine life.

The industry knows how powerful our efforts have been in calling for marine sanctuaries, so they have brought in hired guns to stop us just one step short of creating an historic legacy for our marine life.

We can't let them win.

We need you to make just one call today to leave a message for your local MP letting them know you want marine sanctuaries. This will get the message through to the Environment Minister Tony Burke and tip the decision over the line.

Find your MP here and an easy 'how to' guide here.

If you wanted to send an even more powerful and convincing message to your MP then deliver your message in person by requesting a meeting when you call.

WASHINGTON, DC, February 24, 2011 (ENS) - At least 75 percent of the world's coral reefs are under such intense pressures - both local and global - that their very survival is threatened, finds the most detailed assessment of threats to coral reefs ever undertaken, published on Wednesday.
If these pressures continue unchecked, more than 90 percent of reefs will be threatened by 2030 and nearly all reefs will be at risk by 2050, according to the "Reefs at Risk Revisited" report.

NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco, left, and report co-author WRI's Lauretta Burke at the launch event in Washington, DC.

NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco, left, and report co-author WRI's Lauretta Burke at the launch event in Washington, DC. (Photo by Michael Oko courtesy WRI)

UPDATE 2, October 2011

Dear supporter,

A lot has been happening with the campaign as we work with the community, government and industry to bring in container deposits. But first - your letters and postcards have been sent to the various environment ministers in Australia. Over 26 councils from around Australia have also been distributing postcards - suggest your council does too. From discussions with government officials we know that they are taking notice - several thousand have been sent so far. The constant mailings help keep the pressure up. As you may have heard Coca Cola have threatened to take the Northern Territory government to court over the 2012 introduction of a container deposit system (CDS). Coke is known around the world as an opponent of CDS. However their tactic has backfired by sparking a call to boycott Coke products in the NT. They got a great deal of bad publicity. Fortunately the NT government was able to protect their scheme for the next 12 months by a special regulation - but undoubtedly Coke will still seek to oppose the CDS. The next major development will be the publishing of the impact statement on new national packaging measures. Container deposits is being assessed but less reliable, low return options from the beverage industry are also included. We are expecting a major push by Coke and their allies as well as senior departmental advisers to environment ministers, to drop the CDS option from further discussion. The impact statement will be appearing soon.


We have a big fight on our hands over coming months.