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BECQ’s cleanup nets 1,020 lbs of trash
A whopping 1,020 lbs of trash was collected in just two hours of beach cleanup last Saturday at the Coral Ocean Point in the south coast of Saipan. Majority of the trash collected were beer cans.
The cleanup, organized every first Saturday of the month by the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality, brings together volunteers to clean up a pre-identified area for two hours. This month’s cleanup, a resumption since stopping in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was led by the Division of Coastal Resources Management.
In an interview at the cleanup, BECQ administrator Eli Cabrera appealed to picnic-goers to take home anything that they bring to the beaches, or use the trash bins on site. “As you can see today, there’s a lot of beer by the beach sand area, in between the rocks [and] the smaller trees. I just hope that people going on a picnic, if they come here and bring this stuff, that they take it back home, rather than just leaving it behind.”
“There’s some [trash bins] on site. …There’s quite a few dumpsters so they can take their stuff and dump it there. Let’s keep our beaches clean so everybody’s happy when they come and use the beach again,” he added.
For the cleanups, Cabrera said that BECQ personnel scout the island and see which beach requires a big cleanup operation, and from there, organize the cleanup. Cabrera hopes that the next cleanup will be at the east and west beaches of Saipan.
“Everybody here, this is our island, this is yours and mine. Let’s keep it clean. …We hope that [people] would want to join us next time around. Whoever wants to go volunteer, please come and volunteer,” he said.
In a statement, DCRM appealed to the community to help keep the coasts and oceans clean and trash-free by picking up after themselves, disposing of trash properly, reporting litter and illegal dumping, and becoming a volunteer. To sign up as a volunteer for the cleanup brigade, or for more information, contact the BECQ office at 664-8500/1.
