STOP the RED tide
Our aim is to raise awareness about the impact that pollutants from ocean outfalls can have on our health and the marine environment and fight for a better solution.
Red algae blooms in our oceans can be a sign of excessive nutrients concentration (phosphorus and nitrogen) from human activities.
The colour red also symbolises the danger we put our oceans and humanities future in if we continue to use the oceans as a place to dump our waste as supposedly, “cost effective” disposal process.
Red algae blooms in our oceans can be a sign of excessive nutrients concentration (phosphorus and nitrogen) from human activities.
The colour red also symbolises the danger we put our oceans and humanities future in if we continue to use the oceans as a place to dump our waste as supposedly, “cost effective” disposal process.
Warrnambool-Our first big win!
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Clean Ocean Foundation has achieved its goal of forcing the EPA and Wannon Water to
abandon plans for a deep ocean outfall from its Warrnambool Sewage Treatment Plant. This is a direct result of Clean Ocean Foundation taking the EPAs approval of the initial plan to VCAT. In a negotiated settlement Wannon Water and the EPA will now be required to work with Clean Ocean Foundation to eliminate the need for an outfall pipe and a mixing zone (the dead zone around an outfall pipe) and introduce disinfection of the toxic waste stream, something that was not proposed by Wannon Water initially. CEO John Gemmill says, “For an environmental charity with limited resources, we took a huge risk beginning this costly legal process but were given no choice by the ghastly outcome initially approved by the EPA.” “This agreement will also allow us to unearth the true cost industrial waste places on the Warrnambool community’s and ultimately help us in our goal to reform the system so that the polluter is required to pay a fair price for its impact on the environment.” “This issue is especially important in relation to Port Fairy outfall, that also discharges a combined domestic and industrial effluent stream, where concerns have been raised after two people were seriously injured after surfing close to the outfalls mixing zone.” “Our Stop the Red Tide campaign will continue until funding at a national, state and local level is made available to protect all Australian recreational users and marine environments from the impact of these deadly mixing zones in line with our National Outfall Upgrade Strategy. “We would also like to thank our supporters including the Prior Family Foundation whose philanthropy was critical factor in our landmark win.” |
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