Using new computer modelling, James Cook University (JCU) scientist Kay Critchell fed local wind and tide data into the SLIM modelling system and the findings were marine debris travels far.

Rubbish dumped at sea off Townsville will end up on Mission Beach, while Cairns’ marine trash goes straight to Port Douglas, according to the collected data.

Tracking drift patterns for an average sized plastic water bottle that found its way into various water ways, Critchell reported on where it would land. Rubbish from the Ross River washed ashore in the northern beach side suburb of Pallarenda, while plastic from Trinity Inlet headed for Port Douglas.

Ms Critchell said the findings were consistent.  “For floating plastic the big driver was the wind.  The main collection points were south or south-east facing beaches and those in close proximity to a river mouth,” she said.

With this in mind together with the limited resources available for regular beach clean up crews, efforts would be best utilised to directly target clean up activities within these areas.

“According to this study, the best use of their time would be to patrol beaches facing south or south-east after a big high-tide or storm,” she said.

She said the main thing to remember was that the environment can be restored.

“What is most import is that the rubbish not get into the environment in the first place.  It really comes down to personal responsibility by people disposing of their rubbish properly.  It’s a huge and growing issue, but it’s not hopeless,” she added.

Thankfully, with the Tangaroa Blue inaugural Great Barrier Reef Clean-up held in October with the support of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Reef Trust, Eco Barge Clean Seas and local community groups and councils, the marine debris issue is continually being addressed.

Tangaroa Blue sent their crew to 11 locations to assist in coordinating community clean-up events and raise awareness for the cause. Over 11 tonnes of rubbish was picked up during this mega event!

New clean-up bags with the slogan "don't let your litter bug our reef" were spotted up and down the coastline between Bundaberg and Cooktown.

Heidi Taylor, co-founder of Tangaroa Blue Foundation said the Australian Marine Debris Initiative provides a unique platform for community, government and industry to work together to reduce marine debris along Australia’s coastline.

“Reaching 5 million items being recorded into the Australian Marine Debris Database is a mammoth milestone for this program as it not only highlights the enormous effort by volunteers and partners to clean-up our environment, but also provides a comprehensive dataset on what is actually out there,” said Ms Taylor.

This vital data is being used at local, state, national and international levels to identify sources and create strategies that stop the flow of rubbish and pollution into our oceans.