Tara Murray
Friends of Kororoit Creek are hoping lessons will be learnt after kites and wire were left strewn on the ground at a Sunshine Reserve.
Members of Friends of Kororoit Creek and other volunteers spent last Monday cleaning up Buckingham Reserve, which was littered with kites and kite string after a kite festival the previous days.
Friends of Kororoit Creek president Jessica Gerger said they were quite shocked when they saw all the kites and string on the ground.
“I had a friend call me up and say there is a nice kite festival,” she said.
“I went down there and saw the kites and thought how lovely it was. I then saw the ground and saw them everywhere.
“It was dusk we didn’t realise how bad it was.”
The volunteers picked up more than 200 kites and plenty of wire, with the rubbish filling more than a station wagon.
Ms Gerger said the wire was the biggest concern.They had to rescue one galah which had got tangled in the wire.
She said the Friends of Kororoit Creek had spoken to the event organisers.
“We want to make sure that it never happens again. We want to work in the community on awareness of what happens when you let things go.
“We want to move forward and educate rather than attack and blame.”
Ms Gerger said the organisers said they were going to pay for the clean up of the remaining kites and also make a donation to the Friends of Kororoit Creek.
Brimbank council is investigating the incident and determining next steps, including potential fines of more than $1000, clean-up costs and potential court action.
Mayor Ranka Rasic said the council was extremely disappointed at the amount of waste that was left at Buckingham Reserve and along Kororoit Creek.
“We share the community’s disappointment and thank the dedicated members of our community, particularly the Friends of Kororoit Creek, who helped to clean up the kites and kite strings that were left along Kororoit Creek over the weekend.
“Actions such as this cause significant long term threats to our local wildlife, and are very difficult to clean up.
“This is a complex clean-up job – with kites lodged in trees requiring work at heights. Council has already removed a large trailer load of kites and will continue the clean up over the coming days.”
