Boat Names Australia offset 7x plastic consumption with Ocean Crusaders
by Ocean Crusaders 10 Apr 2024 15:23 AEST
Boat Names Australia offset 7x plastic consumption with Ocean Crusaders © Ocean Crusaders
Australia's leading marine graphics supplier, Boat Names Australia have been supporting Ocean Crusaders since 2010 when founder Ian Thomson sailed solo around Australia to launch the charity. Chris and his team supplied all the logos on the hull and sails for this campaign and have continued to support the charity by supplying logos for vehicles, vessels and campaigns since.
However, for a long time Chris has been frustrated that whilst he can support the charity with logos, his business consumed plastic and there was always a lot of waste. He always wanted to do something about it and now with the Ocean Crusaders new Offsets program, he can make a difference. Whilst the waste is still an issue, he has committed to offsetting his plastic consumption by funding Ocean Crusaders to conduct clean ups of waterways.
What this means in reality, is that for every boat name ordered through the website www.Boatnames.com.au, they will pay Ocean Crusaders to remove from waterways, 7 times the plastic used in making that name. This is a world first for the printing industry and allows every boat owner to offset their boat name or logos, hence creating a positive impact for our oceans.
Owner of Boat Names Australia, Chris Lloyd-Parker stated 'We're really proud to support Ocean crusaders and the vital work they do in removing plastics from the ocean. I would encourage any businesses out there who are concerned about their impact on the environment to get behind Ocean Crusaders.
Founder of Ocean Crusaders, Ian Thomson, stated 'Plastic is not a bad product, it's just badly managed. There are so many uses for plastic that you can't just eliminate it, however you can offset your consumption. Having Boat Names Australia as one of our founding Offsets program supporters is awesome. The products Chris and his team create are amazing and the order system is so simple. Be it your boat name, registration numbers, sail graphics or more, your boat will look better than ever. Knowing that you are making a positive impact on our oceans at the same time is a real bonus.'
On a totally separate note, Ocean Crusaders were also heavily involved in the removal of bow numbers from the Rolex Sydney to Hobart and Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht Races recently. 'These numbers were created by the race organisers and owners were asked to install them. As they were not going to be there for more than a race, they were often not installed correctly and ended up falling off, effectively polluting our waterways. So together with David Griffith off Whisper (A vessel supporting WWF) we asked the question of whether they were still required considering the new technologies to identify vessels that have been introduced since this requirement came in after the 1998 Hobart tragedy. Australian Sailing, and in particular Glen Stanaway, then set about investigating, consulting with AMSA and other authorities, and it was great to see the requirement removed.' Stated Ian. 'We have no issue with plastic that has a long life but single use needs to go, and these bow numbers were effectively a single use plastic.'
Whether your business is consuming plastic, or creating an impact in any way on this world, you can offset your impact with Ocean Crusaders. Just like Carbon Offsets, Plastic Offsets are used to clean the world. In the case of Ocean Crusaders, this means removing debris from our very playground. Ocean Crusaders average 185 tonne of debris removed annually making them Australia's largest waterway cleaning team. They clean all over Australia and also have a branch in Sweden which will continue to grow throughout Europe in the coming years. Plans are in the making for a clean up in July in Marseille, France, home of the 2024 Olympic Sailing Competition. With additional funding, they clean more. This was seen in 2022 after the Brisbane Floods. With additional funding they managed to be on the water more often and removed a staggering 278 tonne of debris in one year. That's a staggering 761kg daily for the entire year. Considering a plastic bottle weighs just 8 grams, you can imagine the volume of debris this is.
To find out more about this new program, visit www.OceanCrusaders.org/Offsets.
A clean ocean makes us all winners, so make a difference today, no matter how small or large your business may be.