Atauro Island

Located in the Coral Triangle, Atauro Island is one of the most biodiverse areas in the world, with over 643 species of reef fish alone. With no designated waste facilities on the island all rubbish is either buried or burnt. The locals and tourists, have been conducting weekly beach clean ups collecting, documenting and sorting marine debris of which 91% has been plastic. The local community is well aware that income from ecotourism and reef diversity is key to their future.

Barry and Lina own the eco-lodge Barry’s Place, a social enterprise and community networking hub. To help deal with the mounting piles of plastic waste, Barry and Lina have donated land and constructed a lockable work space for the community to house a recycling centre. With support they can complete this project adding a Shruder machine, the tools and working with plastics training required for a complete onsite plastics recycling plant. Protecting the reefs from plastic and providing the community with an economic and sustainable solution.