PRESS RELEASE - 2011
Bonaire Celebrates Blue Water Week Clean Up Dive Under Kralendijk's South Pier in Bonaire PRESS RELEASE - 2011
Bonaire (June 14, 2011) - On Saturday, June 4, 2011, volunteers gathered at Dive Friends @ Dive Inn to participate in a special Blue Water Project clean up dive.
The Blue Water Project is a global initiative by the Royal Bank of Canada/Royal Bank of Trinidad & Tobago to foster a culture of water stewardship. The group of divers echoed that sentiment perfectly as the group consisted of predominantly local residents with an international mix of tourists, all dedicating their morning to keeping Bonaire blue and beautiful.
Asko Zuidam of Dive Friends Bonaire addressed the group of 66 divers and explained what trash should be recovered and what should be left behind, as well as how to keep from damaging any marine animals. Shortly afterward, the divers entered the water, descended, and began to fill their bags with trash. When filled, the bags were brought to the surface to those working as shore support. There, Dive Friends crew and volunteers checked once again to be sure no marine creatures had been inadvertently included, counted, and tallied the trash for statistics, and then disposed of it responsibly.
The South Pier is a working pier, and thus the underwater terrain can accumulate more trash than is normal on the reef. The statistics of the rubbish collected once again confirmed this to be true. Items collected include: 259 glass bottles, 38 plastic bottles, 35 fishing lines, 6 dress hangers, 4 shoes, 2 clothing items, 3 tires, 1 garden hose, 2 tubes of toothpaste, 1 camera, 32 different pieces of unidentifiable cloth, 39 pieces of random plastic, 1 flower pot, and much more.
After the dive, all participants and their families were welcomed back for a Pot Luck BBQ?Dive Friends Bonaire and RBC/RBTT, the sponsors of the Blue Water cleanup, provided drinks and main courses, while participants supplied side dishes. All participants were rewarded with log book page certificates of participation.
The next quarterly Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech underwater cleanup is scheduled for Sunday, July 10, 2011
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