Volunteer divers help out with underwater clean up at Busselton Jetty

A group of dedicated volunteers took to the Busselton Jetty at the weekend as part of the fifth annual Busselton Jetty underwater clean up.

In recognition of Clean Up Australia Day, volunteer divers took to the jetty on Sunday to help remove marine debris from the ocean floor, including glass bottles, fishing knives and scissors, bottle lids and socks.

During the one-hour clean up, divers also recovered 3.8kg of fishing line, hooks, sinkers and squid jigs.

With everything collected sorted and counted, the data was submitted to the Australian Marine Debris Initiative Database to help with national research while also helping to inform management strategies targeted at preventing litter.

This year, divers reported less litter than other years, suggesting visitors were taking care to look after the marine environment

However, it was reported fishing gear made up a significant amount of litter collected.

To help reduce marine pollution, fishers are being encouraged to choose the appropriate gear, avoid casting into seagrass, reef areas or near jetty piles where there is a high risk of snagging, and keep fishing stations tidy to avoid accidently knocking items in to the water.

Busselton Jetty thanked all the volunteers who took part in the clean up and those who supported the event including OzFish, Shelter Brewing Co and Swan Dive.