The Cooks River Alliance, in partnership with member councils and the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA), is implementing a coordinated roadmap to reduce litter across Cooks River catchment.

In the 2021 Cooks River Community Values survey, you told us your vision for the river is for it to become “a loved and healthy river valley enriching the heart of Sydney,” with the river becoming free of litter and debris listed among the top three priorities.

Guided by this vision and funded through NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials (WASM) Stream 3 grant, the Alliance is taking a collaborative, coordinated approach to litter prevention at the catchment scale to significantly reduce litter before it reaches the river. Refer to Cooks River Litter Prevention Strategy for more information.

 

Why Litter Prevention Matters

Litter is one of the biggest challenges in our Catchment. The NSW Key Littered Items Study (KLIS) provides information on the composition of litter found in urban estuaries along NSW coast. Being densely populated, Cooks River Catchment site accounts for about 60% of all litter by volume surveyed across ten monitoring sites, making litter prevention in this catchment critical to achieving broader state targets.

 

Our member councils in action

Each council plays an active role in keeping the river clean. Click on the council logos to explore their local initiatives: