Khaleej Times

Earth Day record with plastic bottles

- Staff Reporter

dubai — Dubai marked World Earth Day 2018 in a really unique way, getting a Guinness World Record for forming the longest line of plastic bottles using 58,447 used bottles.

The line, measuring 3,842.5 metres, was arranged on an area of 522 square metres and the event also demonstrat­ed to the public how many plastic bottles we are really using as a community.

The annual World Earth Day aims to bring together communitie­s to raise awareness on environmen­tal issues and inspire one another to unite for the planet. This year’s theme centres around putting an end to plastic pollution by encouragin­g the public to use less plastic, reuse and recycle more.

Alya Al Harmoudi, director of the Environmen­t Department, Dubai Municipali­ty (DM), said: “This year’s theme is extremely important. Plastic pollution is a globally prevalent issue that must be urgently addressed. We want our community to know and understand that each and every one of them can be change-makers.”

Tasnim Salem Al Falasi, head of environmen­tal awareness section at DM, stressed the importance of a continued dialogue with the public and believes that “environmen­tal and climate issues cannot be overcome by any one entity and instead must be a combined effort of individual­s, the community and organisati­ons alike”.

Ahead of Earth Day activities, the environmen­t department also ran a plastic bottle collection drive, with collection boxes were delivered to schools, government entities and private companies to encourage them to contribute their used bottles to the event. Reusable bottles will be distribute­d to the public as a sustainabl­e alternativ­e to plastic bottles.

reporters@khaleejtim­es.com

 ??  ?? Mariska Nell and Marita Peters carried around the trash they generated each day in ‘waste suits’.
Mariska Nell and Marita Peters carried around the trash they generated each day in ‘waste suits’.

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