Litter
Key findings for litter pressure across the Townsville Dry Tropics from the 2025 Report Card
Litter grades across the Dry Tropics reporting region are defined by ‘pressure’ levels, that is how much pressure the local environment may be under from the amount of litter present.
Some locations will change from year to year, as the data used to calculate the litter grades comes from Tangaroa Blue Foundation’s Australian Marine Debris Initiative (AMDI) Database and is collected by volunteers and partners through the ReefClean program, funded through the Australian Government’s Reef Trust.
In the 2026 Report Card, litter was collected at 24 sites.
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For the second year in a row, no sites recorded ‘very high’ litter pressure. However, some areas continue to show elevated levels. Along the east coast of Orpheus Island, litter pressure remains the highest for coastal areas, with Big Rock Bay rated ‘high.’ This is after a year that saw pressure drop to ‘moderate.’ Two other sites on Orpheus also recorded ‘high’ pressure, while the remaining site was classified as ‘moderate.’
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An additional site in Halifax Bay, near the coastal town of Toomulla, recorded a ‘moderate’ level of litter pressure.
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In Cleveland Bay, Alma Bay again had the highest litter pressure on Magnetic Island. Encouragingly, a reduction in litter was recorded with pressure dropping to ‘moderate’ this year, down from ‘high’ in the previous reporting period. The three other Magnetic Island sites all recorded ‘very low’ pressure.
Across the broader Cleveland Bay coastline, litter levels were generally ‘low’ or ‘very low,’ aside from Strand Waterpark Beach, which recorded ‘moderate’ pressure. Some local changes were observed: litter decreased at the old jetty area at Cape Pallarenda, while Secret Beach in South Townsville recorded more litter, shifting from ‘very low’ to ‘low’ pressure.
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Most litter collected in Halifax and Cleveland Bays is considered to have washed ashore from the sea.
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New clean-up sites in the Ross Creek area recorded ‘moderate’ or ‘high’ litter pressure. In contrast, further upstream in the catchment, Aplin’s Weir recorded ‘very low’ pressure, the lowest level observed since the 2019-2020 reporting period.
