CURIOUS MINDS SOUTH AUCKLAND 2024 - PROJECT #9

From School to Sea: Investigating Stormwater Pollution Impacts on Marine Environments

Tread Lightly Charitable Trust

Three Auckland schools (Pt England, Reremoana and Weymouth Primary) joined forces on an 8-month citizen science project led by Tread Lightly to combat coastal pollution. 

More than 60 students in Years 4–8 participated in collecting and analysing litter data from their respective schools and nearby coastlines. They collaborated with marine science experts to understand the impact of marine pollution on ecosystems and designed their own filters for capturing microplastics in seawater.

Tread Lightly hopes this initiative will ultimately empower students to be advocates for change and spark a movement for cleaner coastlines. 

Learnings from this pilot project will also be used to inform the design of a new coastal pollution learning activity to be launched with the new Tread Lightly Caravan in 2025.