Turtley Aware

Reducing, reusing and recycling are three important parts of keeping our waterways and beaches clean and reducing the amount of rubbish that enters the turtle’s home. 

Here are three tips you can implement today:

1. Buying a takeaway coffee? Don’t forget your keep cup! Each year in Australia there are over a billion disposable cups thrown into landfill. If you don’t have a keep cup you can opt for a café that participates in Green Caffeen or uses recyclable coffee cups. Find out more here.
2. Recycling works slightly different in every region so it is important to understand what can and can’t be recycled during your stay! You can recycle right in the Bundaberg Region by using the Recycle Mate website or download the Recycle Mate app.  
3. Always have your reusable water bottle handy! It’s not only great for staying hydrated, it’s also great for the environment. If you forget your reusable bottle and opt for a plastic bottle you can recycle it for cash at Containers for Change! Find out more here.

Fun fact: Did you know that all the recycling in Bundaberg is hand sorted by some of our very patient staff? So please remember to sort and wash your recycling to help speed up the process!

More information on reducing, reusing and recycling can be found on the Bundaberg Regional Council website.

The Reducing Urban Glow project uses smart technology to measure urban lighting levels and makes that data available to the community to reduce the negative impact of lighting on both nesting and hatchling marine turtles.

After 7.30pm, between October and April help reduce the glow affecting our beaches by:

• turning off unnecessary lighting in your accommodation at night
• closing curtains and blinds to reduce light emissions
• when driving, avoiding using high beam near beaches where possible

You can find out more about reducing your urban glow here.

There are so many turtle friendly initiatives and events held within the Bundaberg Region annually. Here are just a few:

• Turtle Hour
• Milbi Festival
• Reducing Urban Glow
• Mon Repos Turtle Encounter
• One Million Trees
• Clean Up Australia Day
• Tangaroa Blue Beach Clean Ups

If you are spending time at the one of the Bundaberg Regions beautiful beaches during your visit and are lucky enough to see a turtle:

• keep your distance, turn off any lights you are using and crouch down low
• avoid loud noises
• do NOT take pictures of the turtle with flash
• do NOT walk or stand in front of the turtle - only approach the turtle carefully from behind after she has started laying eggs
• do NOT shine a flashlight in a turtle’s face
• do NOT touch the turtle

If the turtle appears to be stuck, injured or in distress please contact Department of Environment and Science Wildlife team on 1300 130 372 (select option 1).

During your stay, you might notice different lighting along our foreshore. As part of the Reducing Urban Glow project a new lighting solution was designed. It features:

• Low colour temperature lighting (yellow/amber in appearance) to reduce the amount light in the blue spectrum. Turtles are particularly sensitive to the blue end of the light spectrum.
• Recessed light fittings with louvres to control the direction of light and minimise seaward light spill.
• Smart technology that allows for dimming of lights down to 20% when lighting is not required, and a gradual ramping of lights to 100% when pedestrians are detected.

You can find out more about the Smart Lighting Project here.