Save Our Sydney Harbour: Community Campaigns To Tackle Pollution and Harbour Junkyard

A community-led campaign to clean up Sydney Harbour gaining steam as fears escalate that decaying vessels and abandoned infrastructure threaten to transform the iconic tourist destination into a harbour junkyard.

The Waterfront Action Group and other organisations, have launched an online petition urging the NSW Legislative Assembly to take decisive action against this pollution. Last month, Woollahra Council voted to support the e-petition aimed at addressing pollution in Sydney Harbour. The Inner West Council, North Sydney Councils, and other councils have backed the e-petition. 

The petition calls on the State Government to prioritise the restoration and protection of this iconic waterway. 

Save our Sydney Harbour

City Hub spoke to one of the co-chairs of Save our Sydney Harbour, Stuart King who explained their motivations behind the campaign came from a frustration with “previous stonewalling and lack of action being taken to respond to community concerns about the poor stewardship of our harbour.”

“It seems commercial interests are being put way ahead of community ones. There is not a balanced response for the community. There has been a failure to safely remove failing structures that litter our harbour and create risk for harbour users,” King said.

The Save Our Sydney Harbour website outlines the petition’s purpose as a reflection of the community’s desire to protect and restore the harbour’s environment. The initiative aims to compel the government to eliminate debris by removing redundant, derelict vessels and failing structures that pollute and degrade the area, and implement measures to enhance the harbour’s amenities.

According to Save Our Sydney Harbour, millions of people flock to Sydney Harbour each year. However, international visitors and commuters traveling by ferry and leisure craft from Circular Quay to Parramatta are met with “derelict, redundant vessels, failing structures & junk.” 

Demanding Accountability: A Collective Call for Harbour Restoration

“Over the past 10 to 15 years it has been increasingly observed that we are paying a price for ineffective settings and inadequate legislation governing the mooring of commercial and private vessels in Sydney harbour,” said King. “Community complaints have been regarded as ‘white noise’ and have not been given weight.”

“The ferry the Baragoola sunk at its moorings in 2022 costing taxpayers $2M to recover it. Passion projects such as the Baragoola should be required to demonstrate they have enough funding to cover the cost of recovery should the vessel sink. It was clear it was at very high risk of sinking and yet it was allowed to happen. It was reckless toward the environment. The condition of the hull of the 2,000-tonne Cape Don is bad and it’s currently rusting at its mooring in Balls Head Bay,” King said.

“Communities experience the practice of maritime authorities who respond only after years of community complaints simply to move the offending vessel elsewhere in the harbour. Only for the cycle of community complaints to begin again.”

“Over 1800 people are on a waitlist for a swing mooring of which it takes up to 25 years to be offered one… We know it costs between $20,000 and $30,000 to dispose of a fiberglass privately owned derelict vessel from a swing mooting. Hence NSW swing mooring lease holders allow their vessels to remain on moorings falling into disrepair. Once in a shocking state of disrepair, Transport For NSW may then place a notice on such vessel to commence seizure, recovery, and disposal processes. It becomes a taxpayer’s problem. It’s not fair, not reasonable. We need to do better,” King added.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore Supports Save Our Sydney Harbour

Recently re-elected City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore extended her support for the Save our Sydney Harbour campaign in July, emphasising that the decaying vessels were a problem that the state government had the power to address immediately. 

“While Sydney Water continues to address sewage pipe outflows, we also need to keep working on historic pollution, including derelict vessels. If you’ve been on a ferry or wandering around the Harbour you may have noticed these abandoned ships and structures,” Moore wrote in a Facebook post. 

“They are not only just eyesore, they add dangerous toxins and heavy metals into the water and sediments of Sydney Harbour. This is a problem the NSW Government can address right now by issuing compliance notices and forcing their removal under the Marine Safety Act,” Moore said. 

Key Targets For Protecting Sydney Harbour

Waterfront Action Group is advocating for plans to address these environmental threats and preserve the harbour for future generations. The petition is calling on the Government to take necessary action to ensure:

1. Sydney Harbour is cleared and kept clear of redundant, decaying vessels and failing structures.
2. An independent investigation is undertaken to determine whether NSW government agencies properly and fairly responded to community concerns regarding the management of moorings and ‘orphaned’ assets.
3. An independent environmental and visual impact assessment be properly conducted before permitting vessels to be moored in the bays and coves of Sydney Harbour.
4. The use of the dolphin wharves and moorings in the bays be strictly limited to their original intended and/or approved purpose and not for long-term mooring of vessels.

King also urged the Sydney community to sign their petition for change. “They can take a photo of a derelict vessel and email SOSH. Report a wreck. We want change for current and future generations. This petition is our message to the politicians who can make a difference. We need the community to really get behind our petition,” King said.

The petition will remain open for signatures until December 26. Sign the petition here to support the campaign to Save Sydney Harbour. Visit Save our Sydney Harbour’s website for more information: