Margaret keeps ocean free of litter
Margaret Jupp is known as the heart of Horrocks.
The little beach town tucked between Northampton and Kalbarri has been her second home for as long as she can remember.
“My parents had a house here so once a year we would come out with the car stocked up with blankets and beds and pots and everything we needed for our six-week stay, ” she said.
“Back then, we would play in the sand dunes, which have since been developed into new houses, but that was the good old days.
“The water was beautiful and everyone loved being in this little town — we still do.”
About 12 years ago, Mrs Jupp noticed concrete rocks littered the shoreline and as she stepped further into the shallows, she realised there was a bigger issue.
“There were big and small concrete rocks all over the beach — no one could enjoy the sand and the beautiful coast we have here because there were rocks everywhere, ” she said.
“The concrete was brought in to stop the erosion on the beach, but the waves got to it and it has left such a mess on our beach and in the ocean.
“I got fed up with seeing it litter our beach town so I decided to start diving and cleaning up our beaches because this place is home to me and I want to keep it clean and beautiful.”
From that point, Mrs Jupp had found a new purpose.
At 4.30am every day she would get up with the fishermen in the dark, get her diving gear and spend hours under the sea.
“I was just trying to clear the rocks out of the water so people could enjoy a swim without stepping on something, but I found so much more, ” she said.
“I found bits of railway lines, old car motors (which amateur fishermen must have used as boat anchors), blocks of cement, a lot of rope, jewellery, lots of pennies and old coins and more recently, dozens of old coke and cool drink glass bottles.
“I started out swimming fairly shallow, but then the more I found, the deeper I started going and I couldn’t believe what was under there.”
Mrs Jupp said she estimated more than 50 trailer loads had been filled with the concrete rocks from the beach since she started diving for them.
She said she started to collect some of her findings and repurpose them as artwork, decorations and collectables around her home.
“I love Horrocks — If I see rubbish I pick it up and though it used to be littered before, it is lovely and clean now, ” she said.
“The sea had never been cared for and I decided to be the person who did something about it.
“Fortunately, we have sandbags to stop the erosion on the beach so there won’t be many more rocks washing up.”
