OzFish member collecting waterway litter with the RIver Repair Bus

Tackling Litter

Dedicated to safeguarding the natural beauty of our waterways, and fostering sustainable practices with recreational fishers.

How we’re tackling the litter problem

Litter collection

Clean-ups

We organise regular litter clean-up events across Australia, bringing together passionate individuals who share a common appreciation of our waterways.

Fishing waste bin

Waste reduction

Through our recycling and reuse initiatives, we encourage fishers to properly dispose of fishing gear, recycle plastic, and are exploring innovative ways to repurpose fishing-related items.

Fishing rod

Sustainable fishing

With educational resources, workshops, and guidelines, we advocate for sustainable fishing practices that ensure the long-term health and abundance of fish populations.

Litter in our waterways is impacting our fish through habitat pollution by causing entanglement, and being mistaken for food which gathers in fish stomachs and slowly starves them. It also impacts our fishing experience, reducing our enjoyment of the natural environments we fish in, reducing fish numbers, and even making some fishing spots difficult to access.

Tackling Litter projects

Tackle Loop

We collect old and discarded fishing gear to ensure it is recycled or reused instead of polluting Australia’s waterways or ending up in landfill.
VIEW PROJECT Tackle Loop

Know Your Knots

We’ve found something that every fisher can do to reduce the fishing litter in our waterways. It’s super simple – know your knots! If you’re good at tying on your rigs and lures, you’ll lose less! We have created some handy…
VIEW PROJECT Know Your Knots

Keep It Clean

Each time you go fishing is an opportunity to make a difference and the Fish For Life – Keep It Clean campaign encourages exactly that. Be part of making a difference use the hashtag #FishForLifeKeepItClean, share the videos, and show…
VIEW PROJECT Keep It Clean

Yabby Trap Round Up

An initiative by OceanEarth Foundation, through its Ghostnets Australia program, in collaboration with OzFish Unlimited, The Yabby Trap Round-Up is collecting all old and unwanted yabby traps to protect the future of fishing and the health of our waterways. The…
VIEW PROJECT Yabby Trap Round Up

Listen to our OzCast episodes on litter

OzCast episode 1

OZCAST Episode 1 | Are we eating rubbish?

This OzCast takes a look below the surface of our litter problem in Australia and chats to internationally recognised veterinary scientist Dr Matt Landos. Contaminants, like plastic and other chemicals derived from human activities, enter waterways and impact ecosystems.

Listen Now

Tackling Litter articles

At OzFish we are incredibly proud of the efforts undertaken by so many of our OzFish volunteers to clean up our waterways, and you can help us achieve more.

Donate Now

Your generous support today will help OzFish protect and restore the places you love to fish.

Tackling Litter Projects

Tackle Loop

Tackle Loop

We collect old and discarded fishing gear to ensure it is recycled or reused instead of polluting Australia’s waterways or ending up in landfill.

Read More
Tangle Bins

Tangle Bins

An initiative that improves environmental health and promotes sustainable fishing practices through behaviour change.

Read More
Know Your Knots

Know Your Knots

We’ve found something that every fisher can do to reduce the fishing litter in our waterways. It’s super simple – know your knots! If you’re good at tying on your rigs and lures, you’ll lose less! We have created some handy ‘how to’ videos and instructions on how to tie a few useful fishing ...

Read More
Keep It Clean

Keep It Clean

Each time you go fishing is an opportunity to make a difference and the Fish For Life – Keep It Clean campaign encourages exactly that. Be part of making a difference use the hashtag #FishForLifeKeepItClean, share the videos, and show Australia just how much our waterways mean to recreational ...

Read More
The Great Aussie Crab Pot Review

The Great Aussie Crab Pot Review

OceanEarth Foundation, in partnership with OzFish Unlimited, are on a mission to remove abandoned, lost, and discarded fishing gear from our delicate marine environments. For years we have been hearing about piles of abandoned crab pots accumulating in popular fishing spots in the southern Gulf ...

Read More
Yabby Trap Round Up

Yabby Trap Round Up

An initiative by OceanEarth Foundation, through its Ghostnets Australia program, in collaboration with OzFish Unlimited, The Yabby Trap Round-Up is collecting all old and unwanted yabby traps to protect the future of fishing and the health of our waterways. The traps collected will be recycled ...

Read More