A recent article by Yahoo News has highlighted a frustrating issue popping up in beachside parks and local reserves across Australia: the messy state of public barbecues. Triggered by a viral video of a completely neglected barbecue area at Bronte Beach, the article looks at why public amenity etiquette is becoming a growing point of frustration for local communities.
To understand the true scale of the problem, the article referenced Snap Send Solve data to map out exactly where these barbecue blunders are happening most frequently.
Public BBQ trends:
Our reporting data featured in the article reveals that while most people do the right thing, Snaps of dirty or damaged public amenities are steadily climbing:
- Snap Send Solve received 2,287 Snaps regarding public barbecue issues across the country last year, with a massive proportion of those relating directly to amenities being left dirty.
- Snaps are on track to hit 2,700 incidents by the end of 2026, marking an extraordinary 131% three-year increase.
- Victoria recorded the highest number of reported barbecue incidents in the country, leading the pack with 899 reports.
- Queensland followed closely behind with 735 reports, while New South Wales residents logged 270 incidents over the same period.
- Other states also saw steady community reporting, with Western Australia recording 244 reports, South Australia logging 82, and Tasmania tracking 51.
While leaving food scraps and thick layers of grease behind is a setback for local park-goers, the article emphasised the importance of community action to get these spaces cleaned up quickly.
As our founder and CEO, Danny Gorog, shared with Yahoo News, letting local authorities know about a problem ensures our shared spaces stay usable for everyone:
"We'd encourage everyone to do the right thing and clean public barbecues when they're finished, or jump on the Snap Send Solve app and let councils and other providers know when there's a problem.”
Danny also highlighted that when locals take a second to Snap a problem, local Solvers are listening:
"While we're seeing more and more members of the community use Snap Send Solve to report dirty or damaged public BBQs, the good news is our data shows that nine times out of ten these issues are being resolved, so it's worth the effort.”
Check out the full article here.
