It takes all of us to help keep our seasclean — and every little bit goes a long way. When 73-meter M/Y Dragonflyslipped into its berth at Abell Point Marina, the crew quickly took advantageof the area’s natural beauty. The marina, located in Airlie Beach in NorthQueensland, Australia, is the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands.
“We’re always looking for projects thatoffer something back to the local communities that host us whilst we cruise,finding altruistic uses for the crew and yacht is also a fun team buildingevent,” says Capt. Mike Gregory. No stranger to aid relief in communitiesaround the world — Dragonfly was partof the cyclone relief effort in Vanuatu in 2015 — the crew quickly got to workafter being introduced to Eco Barge Clean Seas by Abell Point.
“Eco Barge Clean Seas is a wellestablished and locally run organization that focuses on cleaning up marinadebris in the Whitsunday region and throughout the Great Barrier Reef MarinePark,” says Joscelyn O’Keefe of Abell Point Marina. “The crew assisted withcleaning up the foreshore area in Airlie Beach on the mainland of theWhitsunday coast, including areas of beach and mangrove.”
The Dragonflycrew got stuck in, with 26 volunteers collecting more than 226 kilograms ofmarine debris for a total of 2,139 items, including aluminum cans, foodpackaging, cigarette butts, and glass bottles. “Our management team Y.CO havean initiative called Clearwater that is currently focused on reducing oceanplastics,” says Gregory, “[and] beach cleanups do their bit to stop thatgarbage entering our oceans and is in harmony with the goals ofClearwater.” So get out there and do your part.