Nearly 600 kilos of garbage were hauled in separate underwater cleanup operations in Batangas and Davao del Norte last week.
In Davao del Norte, members of the Coast Guard District of Southeastern Mindanao, along with several government agencies and the private sector, collected 378 kilos of garbage in the Scubasurero: Stand Up, Save our Reefs,” in the Island Garden City of Samal ( IGACOS) on Friday.
The purpose of the activity organized by the Department of Tourism XI is to preserve and protect marine biodiversity in the Davao Gulf.
Scuba divers dived part of Talikud Island into IGACOS and picked up the trash underwater.
Authorities called on the public to avoid dumping waste, especially plastic, so as not to damage marine resources nor make it dangerous to marine species.
Samal Island is one of the tourist destinations to visit especially for the people of the Davao Region because of its beaches and diving sites.
Nearly 600 kilos of garbage collected under sea in Batangas, Samal Island
Scubasurero was held to commemorate Earth Month in April and Ocean Month this May.
In Batangas, more than 200 kilos of garbage were recovered by divers who conducted an underwater cleanup in Barangay Mainit in Anilao town on Saturday.
The activity called “Unmasked the Ocean” lasted for half a day and was participated by about 30 private divers using 5 boats.
“We gathered some divers and then we went to a few sites na alam namin na palagi kaming nakakakita ng basura, tapos may mga mesh bags kami and then siguro we went on 2 dives, mga 40-50 minutes each shallow lang and we collected as much garbage as we could which is a lot,” said diver instructor Ross Veridiano.
“Actually, ngayon hindi na remote pag nakakita kami ng face mask, parang more often than not we find face mask sa mga dive site sa Anilao. Actually, sobrang lungkot and not only am I sad but I’m also worried, kasi it’s really killing the environment. I can compare it from 1992 tapos ngayon sobrang nag deteriorate na rin ‘yung ating mga corals,” he added.
The group also called on the government to be strict against such anti-environmental activities. They asked the residents to be responsible, especially in dumping garbage at sea to prevent the permanent destruction of natural resources.
Visit our Facebook page for more news updates.