South of Perth Yacht Club awarded International Environmental accreditation

MIA Director Stuart Walton presenting Clean Marina flag to Commodore John Midolo © Michelle Macready

The South of Perth Yacht Club has achieved accreditation under the International Clean Marina Program along with the additional recognition of it being a Fish Friendly Marina.

Situated on the beautiful Swan River, the marina was successful in the rigorous, independent assessment process which audits a 103-point checklist. The Clean Marina Program and assessment criteria was developed by industry and government specialists in Australia. The audit includes inspections of mechanical activities, boat maintenance and storage, fueling, facility and waste management, workshop, risk management and emergency planning and boater education. A detailed written report is provided to the Marina following the site audit.

"The South of Perth Yacht Club has long been a wonderful site that has always had proactive environmental initiatives in place so it is great to accredit as a Clean Marina" said Suzanne Davies, CEO of the Marina Industries Association which administers the program.

The Fish Friendly accreditation is an addition to the Clean Marina accreditation, which assesses advanced elements of environmental planning and management, such as identifying opportunities to incorporate fish friendly structures into the marina to encourage marina life and the education of marina visitors on local fish species.

When advised of the successful accreditation, David Harries, General Manager of South of Perth Yacht Club commented, "South of Perth Yacht Club has been conscientious about its marine environment obligations due to its proximity on the Swan and Canning Rivers and is proud of our technological improvements and preventing noxious run-off from the slipway and hardstand entering the river waters. Our accreditation as a Clean Marina and Fish Friendly Marina is a natural progression of our efforts to constantly improve our environment for members and the community of Perth."

WA based MIA Director, Stuart Walton presented the Clean Marina flag to the newly accredited Club at their weekly Twilight Sailing Meet to Commodore John Midolo.

MIA President Andrew Chapman praised club management noting, "This significant achievement by such a high-profile Perth club is important for the industry and the club as it demonstrates environmental leadership to the wider community. We now have Clean Marinas and Fish Friendly accredited marinas in Australia, Asia and the UAE. These marinas are setting the benchmark for environmental leadership and it is great to see."