ILOILO City – The goal is to make the coastal waters “swimmable again.”
The local government unit here conducted yesterday a massive cleanup drive dubbed as “One Time, Big Time,” which covered 26 coastal villages in the city.
The three-hour activity which began at around 6 a.m. was conducted on the coastline stretching from Barangay Bitoon, Jaro district to Barangay Sto. Niño Sur, Arevalo district.
Mayor Jose Espinosa III led the cleanup which was participated by residents, nongovernment organizations, national government agencies, public and private schools, and city employees.
“This is the biggest cleanup drive sa bilog siguro nga Pilipinas nga initiated by the local government,” Espinosa said. “Ngaa ma-travel pa kita sang anum ka oras pakadto sa Boracay if we can make Iloilo coastal waters swimmable again?”
The mayor believes that making the city waters clean enough for swimming might further boost local tourism.
According to Espinosa, among the reasons behind the conduct of the cleanup is a report from United Nations which forecasted that in 2050, there will be more plastic than fishes in seas.
He said it is high time to start cleaning up the coast “for the future generation.”
“We have to start now. This is a single step. This is the beginning of our quest to restore Iloilo coastal waters,” he added.
The cleanup drive aimed to collect around 200 tons of trash. As of this writing, the total volume of the collected garbage was still inventoried by the City Environment and Natural Resources.
Department of Environment and Natural Resources assistant regional director for management services Jesse Vego, meanwhile, said the activity would serve as a “wake-up call” for the public to take care of the coastal environment.
This can be done through the regular conduct of coastal cleanups, he added./PN
