September 25 is International Coastal Cleanup Day

By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
September 18, 2010

TACLOBAN CITY  –  The annual International Coastal Cleanup Day will take place on Saturday, September 25, 2010.

The International Coastal Cleanup Day is the world's largest, one-day volunteer effort to clean up the marine environment. Every September, volunteers from over 100 countries descend on local beaches, rivers, lakes and canals to show their commitment to cleaner waterways.

Litter in the ocean isn’t just ugly, it impacts on everything. It can make the ocean more vulnerable to impacts from climate change, coastal development, and overfishing. It impacts on local economies, seafood industries, and recreation, and reduces access to beaches.

There are Cleanup sites all over, including inland waterways, streams, and dams because, no matter where one lives, everyone is connected to the ocean. The litter that falls from one’s hands hundreds of kilometers away finds its way to the ocean, too.

In some parts of the world, the International Coastal Cleanup is much more than just removing the trash. By using detailed, standardized data cards, volunteers gather valuable information about the types and sources of debris found. Analyzed and tracked year by year, this information serves as a powerful tool for educating the public, influencing public policy, and effecting positive behavioral change on the part of individuals, organizations, and communities.

Grocery bags…bottles…cigarette butts…wrappers and straws. They don’t fall from the sky; they fall from human hands. And what’s washed up on the shore is only a fraction of what is in the water.

Marine litter is symptomatic of a wider malaise namely, the wasteful use and persistent poor management of natural resources. The plastic bags, bottles, and other debris piling up in the oceans and seas could be dramatically reduced by improved waste reduction, waste management, and recycling initiatives.