DENR National Capital Region led the volunteers in Metro Manila to be a part of the global movement for the ocean and #SeatheChange at Ocean Conservancy’s 38th International Coastal Cleanup (ICC), the world's largest volunteer effort to remove and record trash from lakes, waterways, and beaches.
“The International Coastal Cleanup shows us that every piece of trash we collect locally adds up globally. Taken together, we can all #SeaTheChange we make, and our ocean life sees a change, too,” said Atty. Michael Drake P. Matias, DENR-NCR’s OIC Office of the Regional Executive Director, in a concurrent capacity.
Plastic pollution is a massive problem for the oceans, but even small actions can make a big difference. Every bottle, every straw, and every piece of trash you clean up can lead to a cleaner, healthier ocean. Also, when we clean up from the home, all those who live in the ocean can #SeaTheChange.
This year, in Metro Manila, there are ten (10) identified cleanup sites—SM By the Bay, Pasay City; Las Piñas – Parañaque Wetland Park (LPPW); Baseco Beach, Manila City; Tanza Marine Tree Park in Navotas City; Manila Baywalk Dolomite Beach; Tullahan River, Brgy. San Bartolome, Quezon City; Shores of Brgys. Tangos North and South, Navotas City; Pasig River Lawton Ferry Station; H20 Hotel in Manila Ocean Park, Roxas Boulevard, Manila City; and at the back of Solaire Hotel and Resort Casino, Brgy. Tambo in Parañaque City.
The theme of this year's ICC in the Philippines is “Clean Seas for Healthy Fisheries”. It aims to renew global efforts to tackle and address marine litter and plastic pollution, now focusing on how individuals can use both national and international laws to drive change. It is something
It is important to understand and solve marine pollution by protecting and restoring ecosystems and biodiversity from it. It provides many benefits and one of them is the sustainable feeding of the global population by providing food supply. We must be responsible for the need to clean and keep the waters clean for the desire to have a healthy and rich fishery, and relatedly a lush supply of fish for all of us.
In NCR, on the other hand, the DENR-NCR is also campaigning for the theme "Fighting for Trash-Free Manila Bay". This is still in support of the continuous cleaning and rehabilitation of Manila Bay. Through the ICC, we in the DENR-NCR, hope that we can encourage more clean-up volunteers for the daily and weekly cleanup activities being conducted by the barangays in their respective areas.
Ultimately, above all, the regional office aims to increase public awareness of the impact of the activities at home or in the community on Manila Bay and to be more responsible in managing their waste—from segregation to proper disposal, and everything in between.
During the ICC event, the DENR-NCR was joined by volunteers from local government units, private organizations, industries, the academe, and other stakeholders in cleaning up Manila Bay and its tributaries.
The type and number of garbage collected from each site are recorded and weighed for submission to Ocean Conservatory, a Washington-based environmental group that spearheaded the first coastal cleanup in 1986. The group will validate the report and consolidate it with those from other participating countries.
Through the annual ICC, Ocean Conservatory hopes to find solutions to threats in oceans and waterways around the world. ###
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