As part of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve Reef Fest 2019, a massive coastal cleanup activity was held around San Pedro Town on Saturday, May 11th.
The clean-up is a yearly activity that serves to continue raising awareness about keeping the environment clean and to stop the single use of plastic.
At 8AM a large crowd of participants gathered at the Hol Chan Marine Reserve Dock located at the end of Caribeña Street.
Participants separated into groups and tackled different areas of the island. Some headed to the north side of the island and began cleaning the beach side, while others tackled the lagoon.
After each team had filled their boats with garbage, they headed to the Sunset Boardwalk dock to drop it off. Collected during the cleanup were Styrofoam products, plastic bottles and bags, broken chairs, old toilets, rusted metals, tires, pipes, and wood, among other garbage that is incredibly harmful to the environment.
By 11:30AM, teams had dropped off tons of garbage removed from the seashores and mangrove roots in the lagoon. After the clean-up, each participant was provided with lunch, a reusable shopping bag, and water bottle. The eco-friendly tokens provided to participants are meant to send a message to others to stop the use of non- biodegradable products.
Hol Chan Marine Reserve would like to thank everyone who participated in their annual coastal cleanup, which include staff members of Belize Bank Limited, American Crocodile Education Sanctuary, Students from Gwen Lizarraga High School in Belize City, Hol Chan staff, Bacalar Chico staff, Roberto Bradley Sr. and Jr., Jahmaar and Hamerlin from The San Pedro Sun! Island residents are further asked to join in the various 2019 Reef Fest activities taking place throughout this week.
