World Heritage-listed K'gari (Fraser Island) has become a dumping ground for rubbish since south-east Queensland's flood disaster, with everything from e-scooter helmets to pontoons washing up on the usually unspoilt beaches.
Resort manager Kerry Bell said he had not seen a mess like it in the 25 years he had been living on the island.
"You are just dodging a huge amount of rubbish right along the beach," he said.
"We were just zig-zagging in between all sorts of things that have washed up on the beach.
"Mainly logs, but there is a lot of plastic."
Mr Bell said most of the debris had made its way north from the flood areas, with some travelling more than 380 kilometres on the tides.
"A couple of pontoons washed up, little aluminium dinghies, water tanks [and] just all sorts of plastic items."
And the rubbish keeps coming
Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) has removed larger pieces of debris, clearing a path for traffic along K'gari beaches.
"Rangers have been actively monitoring K'gari for debris since the floods occurred, with the majority of objects washing up on the island [on March 14]," a Department of Environment and Science spokesperson said.
"Rangers have located items from various locations, including a bin with branding on it from Ipswich."
QPWS said it was working hard to remove remaining debris quickly.
"Large machinery including loaders and trucks will be required to remove the pontoons from Teewah and K'gari," the spokesperson said.
"QPWS is working with Maritime Safety Queensland to arrange this part of the clean-up operation."
But Mr Bell said smaller pieces of plastic caused the biggest concern.
"We were walking this morning and picking up bags and bags of bottle tops, straws, and smaller plastic items," he said.
As high tides continue to wash up on the shores, so does the plastic.
"We saw on our walk this morning — and this was only washed up last night — literally hundreds and hundreds [of bottle lids] just in 100 metres," Mr Bell said.
"You flip the seaweed over that has washed up on high tide and there are more bottle tops underneath."
K'gari locals are determined to return the island to its previous state.
"I'm here at Eurong on the beach and there's been a lot of people just taking plastic bags down there and picking up smaller rubbish," Mr Bell said.
"We're going to go down at low tide and just keep picking up plastic that has washed in overnight."
