01-08-2025
Plastic banana bags clean-up underway along polluted Far North Queensland creek
Lisa Barba loves casting a line in the creek that runs through her Far North Queensland cane farm.
So she is fed up with the once-pristine waterway filling up with plastic banana bags from farms upstream.
"It's unsightly because it's plastic and it's yucky."
She said neighbouring residents were also frustrated by plastic bags strung up in trees along the banks of Liverpool Creek, which flows towards the Great Barrier Reef.
Ms Barba believes 20 kilometres of the waterway needs cleaning up, and that most of the plastic has come from a landslide after flooding earlier this year.
She has been cleaning up bags by hand on a section of creek that runs through her property.
But the cane farmer wants more to be done.
"I have a mate who's in a volunteer cleaning up group who's picked up bags, and the bags have had baby crabs in them," Ms Barba said.
"They've died because they've been trapped in there.
"My biggest hate is plastic going out onto the reef."
Removing the banana bags is not easy because the waterway is home to saltwater crocodiles.
So Ms Barba started an online action group three weeks ago, calling for support.
"Finally now, we've got the ball rolling a bit, a lot more people are jumping on board."
Ms Barba said politicians, environmental organisations, locals and businesses were getting involved.
"It's a very hard job to do, so it really needs a specialist to come in and do it," she said.
Cassowary Coast Mayor Teresa Millwood said the council had engaged a contractor to help after securing $30,000 from the Queensland Reconstruction Authority.
Cassowary Coast Banana Growers Association chairman Dean Sinton said he was disappointed by the pollution and the organisation was working on a plan to limit the rubbish.
"It's not a good look for industry," he said.
"Those things can probably travel a long way and ecosystems and marine wildlife [can be impacted], which at the end of the day we don't want."
Mr Sinton said he disposed of his banana bags through a waste management system on his farm.
He said there were several schemes looking into ways to recycle and repurpose the plastic.
"That's underway in a small scale … [it has] still got a way to go, but looking into the pipeline, it's going to be a resourceful way to dispose of waste plastics," Mr Sinton said.
"The majority of industry is doing the right thing, we just need to sharpen the pencil up a bit and you know, get everyone on board."
