Geography Excursion

Year 10 Environment and Me Fieldwork Report

On 18 April 2024, a year 9 and 10 Geography class went on a fieldtrip to St Kilda beach. Thanks to Abbie for her positive reflection on her Fieldwork Experience which appears here. 

We took the bus to the beach and when we arrived, we made some land use observations in Catani gardens. We took note of what was around us, such as how many people used the park or what kinds of houses were there. We tried our best to sketch our observations, and we discussed how human development affected both people and animals.

Next stop was a short walk to West Beach where we searched the sand for nurdles, which are small balls of plastic that constantly get spilled into the ocean. They were hard to find at first, but once we found the first few, we saw the beach was scattered with them. When we took a break for lunch, shared stories about what we had found. It was interesting to walk down the pier when there was work going on. There was a project to make the beach more accessible to the Little Penguins that live in the rocks. 

Another thing we found was a pile of waste collected by the beach clean-up crew. Mr Chiumello explained how earlier that day, a beach grooming team from the council would drive up and down the beach, cleaning up trash left from people. This helps to keep plastic waste and debris from entering the Port Phillip Bay. It was interesting to see how the council has managed waste issues around the St Kilda beach area. We came across a litter trap built near the water. It seemed very effective in collecting trash that would’ve otherwise ended up polluting the bay. We also saw a path made of recycled plastic that we decided was a great way of managing waste and making the area easy for people to enjoy.

This trip was a wonderful opportunity to explore our city and I'm sure I speak for the rest of the 9 and 10 geography students when I say I had a great time.

Clinton Chiumello

Humanities Teacher