The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Coastal Clean-up Day observed

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Monday, Sep 17, 2007
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Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Coastal Clean-up Day observed

Staff Reporter

250 schoolchildren, NCC cadets among participants

Photo:S. Mahinsha

CONCERTED EFFORTS: NCC cadets removing garbage from the Kovalam beach as part of the cleaning programme organised by the Coast Guard on Sunday in connection with the International Coastal Clean-up Day.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: More than 250 school children and cadets of the National Cadets Corp (NCC) were among those who took part in the cleaning drive on the Kovalam beach organised on Sunday by the Coast Guard as part of the International Coastal Clean-up Day.

Prior to the clean-up operation, the children were briefed about the problems posed by ‘marine litter’ and its dispersal as part of the preparations for the Pollution Prevention Initiative. Later, teachers, volunteers from the Indian Institute of Hotel Management, the local panchayat and the Kudumbashree joined the children in removing litter from the beach.

According to a press note issued here the volunteers removed cigarettes, butts, food wrappers, containers, caps/lids, bottles, chewing tobacco packaging, fishing lines, nets, ropes, plastic sheets, syringes, bags, balloons and abandoned crab and lobster traps from the beach. Much of this debris ends up in the ocean. Other debris reaches there through activities of various vessels – from small boats to large ships – offshore drilling rigs and fishing docks.

The information about the debris collected on Sunday would be used to educate the public about the problems posed by marine debris and about the need to formulate methodologies to manage such debris, the press note added.

Cigarette packets, butts, match sticks and tobacco packets constituted a good portion (25 per cent) of the debris removed from the Shangumughom beach by 20 volunteers of the World Wife Fund for Nature WWF). While ice cream sticks, disposable plates and plastic cups amounted to 20 per cent of the garbage removed, plastic carry bags constituted 15 per cent. Food wrapping and discarded mineral water bottles came to a small percentage of the debris removed by the volunteers.

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