THE Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the NT (AFANT) has congratulated the li-Anthawirriyarra Sea Rangers and the King Ash Bay Fishing Club on their effort in cleaning up an abandoned crabber’s camp on the Dugong/Rutherford Creek in the McArthur River.
AFANT President Warren de With said “It was great to see the different groups working together and making a real difference to the local environment.
“AFANT was extremely pleased to be involved in bringing together the parties and helping out on the day in what can only be described as a positive partnership between the local rangers and local recreational fishers, both groups have a real passion for the environment of the area.
“It was particularly important that it could be removed before a major cyclone impacted the area and the rubbish and waste material on the site was spread through the surrounding sensitive mangroves and would have been almost impossible to remove.”
Stan Allen from the li-Anthawirriyarra sea rangers commented “job well done, all went well and worked really well with the King Ash Bay Fishing Club volunteers, which was good”.
The abandoned crabbers’ camp was a real eyesore and it is disappointing that it was left in the derelict state with rubbish everywhere, particularly in a very special place like the McArthur River mouth.
Geoff Hulm from the King Ash Bay Fishing Club thanked the sea rangers for providing local knowledge, expertise, the vessels and man power and AFANT for bringing the organisations together to address a problem that had been a concern to club members and other local residents.
The camp before and after the clean-up.
