Parramatta River community clean up removes 150 bags of rubbish

Community members from across two council areas came together on World Clean Up Day on September 17 to remove plastics, polystyrene, and take-away containers from the Parramatta River catchment area.

The first-of-its-kind community occasion was a roaring success with more than 150 volunteers participating and registering through Clean Up Australia.

Volunteers banded together from both City of Ryde Council and City of Parramatta Council, alongside numerous community groups: Parramatta River Catchment Group, Conservation Volunteers Australia, ParraParents, Plastic Free Parramatta, Plastic Pluckers, Fraternity in Truth Association (FITA) and Rotary Club of Ryde.

Residents from the nearby areas also participated, with volunteers spreading out along the Parramatta River foreshore from Meadowbank to Ermington.

Their cumulative efforts removed more than 150 bags of rubbish from the river, as well as large items like milk crates, cardboard boxes and electrical cables.

There was even a television collected.

Parramatta River is one of Sydney’s most important waterways and the largest tributary of the harbour.

It is named for the Burramattagal people, who have occupied the area comprising present-day Parramatta for over 60,000 years.

The Burramattagal people took their name from the “place where eels lie down” to breed at the head of the river, which flows through many Aboriginal land areas and was central to a lifestyle of fishing and canoeing prior to colonisation.
 

Colonisation led to the immediate displacement of local First Nations groups, who nevertheless led a resistance against the settlers.

Farms and orchards were established at the head of the Parramatta River as early as 1791.

Since then, water quality of the river has severely declined.

While the World Clean Up Day efforts focused on removing litter from the waters and banks, it was also a symbol of community coming together to do something positive for an amazing place.

Resource and Resilience Officer at Ryde Council, Stephanie Keane said: “I really wanted to get Ryde council and Parramatta Council working together – because the river extends beyond council borders!

“The meeting point was the Ermington boat ramp carpark which is the exact line between the two council areas.

“We’re very keen to work with our neighbours.”

It was the first time a really big community event of this kind had run, although FITA has been hosting World Clean Up day events on the river for many years and other community groups such as ParraParents hold regular foreshore cleans.

Litter tends to gather anywhere where there are mangroves and in any of the low-lying areas, particularly between the two wharfs at Ermington and Meadowbank.

One of the highlights of the event was the NSW government litter barge which carried the bagged waste away from the ParraParents site, run by Kellie Darley at George Kendall Riverside Park at Ermington.

Keane mentioned that the most common types of litter collected were small bits of plastic and polystyrene, while cigarette butts have decreased in number “which is great – I know a lot of groups have cracked down on those – including Clean Up Australia!”

She mentioned that she and Kellie Darley believe that litter levels overall have decreased over the years, which is a good sign.

Keane also emphasised the need for better packaging choices for a more sustainable future.

“There need to be industry changes in plastics production,” she said.

But she had a positive outlook on the role of volunteers in improving sustainability: “Volunteers are the ones out there on the ground living it. They see the litter and they buy the products. They can ask for change from producers or local councils, or they can talk to their neighbours and get people to come together to create change.

“I’m talking about PEOPLE POWER!”

by Lucia Moon