Fishers told to ‘behave responsibly’ at Sydney Harbour wharves

Christmas across Australia’s biggest city has been blighted by piles of rubbish left behind by inconsiderate revellers at iconic tourist spots.

Christmas in Australia’s global city has been blighted by ugly scenes of rubbish piled up at some of its most iconic sights and now another spot has been marked out for a warning.

The NSW government’s fisheries department has called on Sydney’s fishermen to “behave responsibly” after posting a photo to social media showing rubbish and fishing gear left behind at the city’s iconic Sydney Harbour wharves, a popular tourist spot and fishing zone where ferries come in to land and pick up passengers.

The photo, posted to the NSW DPI Fisheries Facebook page on December 24, shows an ugly mess of empty food packages, sandals, discarded clothes, coke cans and fishing line and bait.

“Ferries and passengers, not fishos, have priority on Sydney Harbour wharves,” the post states.

Rubbish and fishing gear is left strewn across a Sydney Harbour fishing wharf in December. Picture: NSW DPI Fisheries

“Please do not cut bait or leave unwanted bait, fish and rubbish on the wharf, keep passenger seating clear and not obstructed by tackle.

“Sydney’s ferry wharves offer fantastic access for land-based anglers targeting a wide variety of fish species.

“Showing respect, courtesy, and consideration to ferry passengers and wharf workers will go a long way towards ensuring we all continue to enjoy access to these great facilities.

“Help maintain your access to Sydney ferry wharves network by doing the right thing. “Encourage your fishing mates to behave responsibly.”

Sydneysiders are grumbling over a growing pileup of rubbish and waste blighting parts of the city.

A wild Christmas Day party on the iconic Bronte Beach in eastern Sydney left the prized destination trashed with broken glass, rubbish and human waste.

Thousands of revellers descended upon the iconic Bronte Beach for Christmas Day celebrations in the sun. Picture: Supplied

Waverley Bondi Ward councillor Leon Goltsman said the beach party event was “unacceptable” and the council needed to present a clearer message to tourists and the broader public it would not accept inconsiderate behaviour in future.

“The fact there is still broken glass there, people are cutting their feet, the fact people are still having illegal parties … the fact if anyone gets injured or hurt, we can’t even get an ambulance to them because it is all blocked, it’s unacceptable.”

Mr Goltsman said the council needed to put on family events over the Christmas period to help keep the beaches free from wild parties.

“You can’t control people who are pisspots, they will bring alcohol down to the beach,” he said.

Bronte Beach resident Robert Kokolich helps a council worker clean up the enormous amount of rubbish and broken glass left behind from Christmas Day celebrations. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

“But if we run our own events, or at least we work with people who are professionals and they could assist in running events, what that does is it manages it, it shows people that Bondi (and Bronte) for this sort of behaviour is out of bounds.”

Tens of thousands of mostly tourists are believed to have flocked to Bronte Beach on Christmas Day on Monday, donning red bathers for the annual beach party event.

Long-time resident Robert Kokolich, who lives near the beach, said the crowds defied prohibitions on alcohol and became aggressive when he attempted to film them.

“It was the worst ever. It was out of control. There was nothing happening in Bondi, but everyone must have come to Bronte … right in front of my house,” Mr Kokolich said.

Originally published as Fishers told to ‘behave responsibly’ at Sydney Harbour wharves