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The country's largest community-based environmental event, Clean Up Australia Day, will this year incorporate a nationwide citizen science project to gauge the extent of face mask litter.

More than three billion single-use masks were discarded across the globe every day during 2020, contributing to a major portion of the pandemic-related rubbish entering the environment.

However the local extent of the problem remains unclear.

To help 'unmask' the issue, Clean Up Australia is asking volunteers as they set out to do their bit for the planet on Sunday March 6, to tally the number of face masks they collect.

Chair Pip Kiernan says there's no doubt quantities of plastic waste have been surging because of COVID-19 but there is no available data to confirm the number of used face masks out there.

"We can't cover up the problem - now is the time to act," she said.

"Our environmental issues have not gone away because of COVID, rather, they have escalated because of the mountain of rubbish we've created."

Everyone registered to take part in clean up day can also participate in the mask count.

All are covered by the organisation's public liability insurance while community and school groups will receive free gloves and bags - businesses are asked to pay a small fee to cover costs.

Worryingly, plastics in disposable masks can take up to 450 years to break down, with researchers warning littered single-use models could be releasing chemical pollutants and nano-plastics into the environment.

Over the past two years there have also been cases of seabirds and wildlife found tangled in them.

Ms Kiernan says the next generation of PPE equipment should be designed not only for safety but to have the lowest environmental footprint possible.

"Urgency is required to be more creative in the design of these products with the environment right up there in our thinking," she said.

"This concept of product stewardship - when we design a product and consider what happens to it at the end of its life - needs to be addressed at the outset."

Signing up early to help on March 6 is critical so the charity has enough time to process applications and deliver gloves and bags to households across Australia.

Participants will be provided with online access to record the number of masks they collect on a national database.

Australians can register or donate at cleanup.org.au

© AAP 2022

The swimmer killed by a great white shark off Sydney's Little Bay was a "wonderful human being", his UK family have said.

It is believed Briton Simon Nellist, 35, was training for a forthcoming charity swim when he was fatally attacked in front of horrified onlookers in on Wednesday afternoon.

His family released a tribute calling him a "wonderful human being" and "very talented photographer".

"Simon was a gentle, kind and wonderful human being. He was a cherished fiancee, son, brother, uncle and friend," they told the BBC.

"Simon was funny, compassionate and always had time for people. He had a rare gift of instantly being able to connect with others, gaining their trust and respect."

Nellist's family said he was a "proud Cornishman" who had made Australia his home with his fiancee Jessie.

"Simon had a great passion for nature and the sea, as well as being a very talented photographer," they said.

Friends described Nellist, an experienced diving instructor as someone who "loved the water".

Della Ross, a friend of Nellist, told broadcaster 7News: "Everything that is connected to Simon, to me is connected to the ocean.

"The news hit us like a truck because he is really one of the people that makes this Earth better."

A neighbour living in the Wolli Creek area of Sydney described Nellist as "such a nice guy".

Emergency services were called to Little Bay at around 4.35pm local time on Wednesday after reports that a swimmer had been attacked by a shark.

The incident, believed to be the first fatal shark attack in Sydney since 1963, prompted the immediate closure of more than a dozen beaches in the area until Friday.

It is believed Nellist was training for the five kilometre Malabar Ocean Swim, due to take place this weekend, when he was killed.

The event has been cancelled as a mark of respect, organisers said.

© PAA 2022

Two truck drivers have died and a northwest NSW highway is expected to be closed for hours after two road trains collided head on.

Emergency workers were called to a bridge at Brewarrina, east of Bourke, around 7pm on Saturday.

Firefighters are working to control the blaze that ignited when the two heavy vehicles crashed, killing both drivers.

Police said the Kamilaroi Highway is blocked in both directions.

© AAP 2022