“We have some of the most beautiful natural assets in the world yet we are among the worst at protecting them — it’s embarrassing,” said Mr Stone, a local businessman, of his haul from Broadbeach.

The co-founder of Water3 freshwater kiosks is speaking out as “Sea Week” started yesterday with the aim of raising awareness for the ocean.

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Mr Stone said the National Litter Index, published by Keep Australia Beautiful, labelling Queensland as the most-littered state in the country, should be a wake-up call for those who use single-use plastics.

“People need to entirely reboot their habits when it comes to thinking about what they purchase,” he said.

“They need to question what is really important to them — quenching their thirst from a plastic bottle, or saving our ecosystems that we can’t live without?”

He said while the supermarket plastic bag debate had drawn attention recently studies show plastic bottles were a larger problem.

“There’s 10 times the amount of plastic bottles choking up our local environment than plastic bags.

“Beverage containers are the second most-littered item in Queensland, second only to cigarette

butts.”

This article featured in Gold Coast Bulletin