Oceana and Hol Chan Marine Reserve Team up for Coastal Cleanup

As part of the International Coastal Cleanup Day, The Hol Chan Marine Reserve and volunteers from the San Pedro High School conducted a beach cleanup at the turtle nesting beach in the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve. The Clean Up took place on Saturday, September 28, 2013 where they collected a total of 13 -55 gallon trash bags.

Belize’s participation is part of the largest global volunteer effort to help protect our seas, lakes, lagoons, rivers & creeks. Each year volunteers spend a few hours removing debris and trash from beaches and the banks of waterways, recording the refuse removed. Last year’s efforts in Belize saw close to 1,000 volunteers – many of whom are Oceana Wavemakers—remove 8,696 pounds of rubbish from more than 25 miles of coastline and waterways in over 40 locations across the Jewel.

To help with cleanup year round, the best way to tackle garbage is not to create it. Oceana encourages the public to reduce, reuse & recycle through steps such as these:
*Encourage food vendor to use biodegradable containers & utensils instead of Styrofoam;
*Encourage your local store to use biodegradable packaging/shopping bags & take your own reusable bag when shopping; and *Organize a recycling program at your workplace or school to collect plastic & other recyclable materials.