World Cleanup Day is an annual global social action program aimed at combating the global solid waste problem, including the problem of marine debris. World Cleanup Day harnesses the power of people around the world to achieve incredible things by joining together. Its beauty lies in co-operation and collaboration: building bridges between disparate communities, and including all levels of society – from citizens to business, to government. This year’s World Cleanup Day took place on September 17th, 2022.
On this day, Biodiversity Sri Lanka (BSL) collaborated with the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), its Patron Member, Citizens Development Finance PLC (CDB), and SME Member Mai Globe Travel to conduct two beach cleanup events in Modara- Pollwatte and Wellawatta. Our Patron Member, Abans Cleantech (Pvt) Ltd, the environmental management arm of the Abans Group responsibly disposed of the collected waste at their recycling facility.
CDB employees alongside their family members participated in this worthy cause. An 800m beach stretch, polluted with lots of plastics, glass, rubber, and other debris was cleaned up. More than 100 poly sack bags full of segregated waste and debris were collected from the stretch. This clean-up initiative was a part of BSL’s ‘Life to our Beaches’ Program which is a public-private-community partnership for maintaining Sri Lankan beaches clean and healthy. CDB has partnered with BSL under this program to look after the Modara- Polwatte beach stretch for a year. After the initial clean-up was done on World Cleanup Day, the stretch was handed over to the appointed Samurdhi beach caretaker for maintenance under the supervision of MEPA and BSL.
Mai Globe is a travel agency based in Sri Lanka and Vietnam, committed to improving sustainability and responsible tourism. As a part of its commitment to the planet, Mai Globe undertook the beach clean-up in Wellawatta. 15 employees were engaged in the clean-up, cleaning a 300m beach stretch. The marine debris collected included PET bottles, glass bottles, cloths, Styrofoam, and e-waste items, amounting to 20 poly sack bags.
