Making a clean sweep

• Volunteers come together to benefit environment, writes Alf James

Clean-up and Recycle SA Week takes place from September 11-17, with various clean-ups being planned for neighbourhoods, water sources and beaches around the country. One of the highlights of this annual environmental awareness event is the 21st International Coastal Clean-Up Day (ICC) that will be taking place on Saturday.

Clean-up and Recycle SA Week is an annual initiative by the local plastics industry, supported and endorsed by the various packaging streams and retailers. Each year, about 120,000 volunteers participate in these clean-up activities. The initiative is supported by provincial governments, local municipalities, environmental organisations, businesses, schools and communities.

“The aim is to increase an awareness of the social, environmental and economic benefits of recycling. During this time, we encourage communities, schools and businesses to clean up the areas where they work, live and play by collecting the litter and ensuring it gets recycled,” says Douw Steyn, Sustainability Director of Plastics SA.

One of the highlights is SA’s participation in the International Coastal Clean-up Day — the world’s biggest annual volunteer effort for ocean health that sees thousands of people flock to beaches to pick up and remove litter found in the marine environment.

“Ocean Conservancy is the international co-ordinator of the ICC, but Plastics SA coordinates the beach clean-ups that take place in the three Cape provinces, as well as various river clean-ups inland.

“We are proud to partner with KZN Marine Waste Network members who take responsibility for co-ordinating beach clean-ups at all the major beaches in KwaZulu-Natal,” says Steyn.

This year Plastics SA is partnering with the Let’s Do It! Africa campaign and the WESSA Tourism Blue Flag Project — a National Department of Tourism funded coastal conservation and youth development project — to support or implement a number of registered ICC events stretching from the west to the east coasts of SA. This effort will mark one year to the big World Clean-up Day on September 15 2018.

“We are seeing an increase in the number of clean-ups being organised inland at rivers, streams and other water sources as the public are realising that trash travels. All litter eventually finds its way to our country’s oceans and onto the beaches,” says Steyn.

“This year we celebrate our 21st year of being involved in the International Coastal Cleanup Day. In human years, we would now be considered an adult, and have to adopt adult ways. Our sincere hope is that South Africans will mature in the way we consider litter by realising the impact our actions have on the environment. We can turn the tide on waste if we all work together,” says Steyn.

For information, log on to www.cleanupandrecycle.co.za or www.plasticsinfo.co.za

/SAM REINDER Each year volunteers flock to SA’s beaches — including Robben Island — to remove litter from the marine environment as part of the International Coastal Clean-Up Day.