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Volunteers haul more than 1000 lbs of trash
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Posted on Apr 21 2008
More than 25 volunteers hauled over a thousand pounds of debris out of the Garapan fishing dock on Friday.
The usual garbage found included aluminum cans, glass bottles and various plastic items. Divers also heaved a scuba tank ashore.
The cleanup started at 8am along the shore, followed by a dive. A second dive was performed in the afternoon. Northern Marianas Dive Operators Association members and Toshi Yamaguchi, NMDOA president, also donated their time to this event.
According to Marvin Seman, cleanup coordinator, there continues to be debris along the shoreline and in the water. DEQ wanted to engage the community, especially the island divers, in protecting marine waters and thus organized a dive cleanup.
Debris can kill marine life. Garbage is often times mistaken for food and becomes ingested by wildlife. Marine life can also be harmed by entanglement. Entanglement results when an animal become encircled or ensnared by garbage. Entanglement can occur accidentally, or when the animal is attracted to the debris as part of its normal behavior or out of curiosity.
Garbage can also block drainage systems and cause flooding. Stormwater runoff (the water that flows along the streets or round as a result of a storm) can carry street litter into sewer pipes, which flow to the ocean, thus, impacting water quality.
The dive cleanup was part of DEQ’s environmental awareness celebration. [B][I](CoCo)[/I][/B]
