Goa fights to clean the ocean free of plastic 28 May. 2019 11:46
Armstrong Vaz Author + FOLLOW Midway through the month of April a social activist posted a video of Kharevaddo Beach from the port city of Vasco littered as it was with garbage and plastic and a host of things which are an eyesore to the viewers. That was not the only thing, sewerage and water from the toilets was opening flowing into the Arabian Sea as the pig-style toilets have not been connected to any sewerage connection worthy of its name. No wonder, Suni Loran, a member of the Jaycee organization, who have been doing bits and pieces work of cleaning some places in Vasco said it a huge ask which requires a long term solution and cannot be a one-off thing. “We are preparing a plan since the problem is huge it cannot be a onetime cleaning exercise. Will appreciate feedback on the issue from people. It’s our dream to revive the beach,” said Loran. We are approaching the end of May and the Kharevaddo beach continues to be full of garbage and plastic waste. In a few days time, the South West monsoon will set in Goa and with its arrival effectively all the plastic waste will be flowing in the Arabian Sea. If Loran and his band of Jaycees or for that matter any people who are concerned about saving the oceans from this plastic disaster have to act fast, it now. And they cannot be looking far for advice and logistic inputs to tide over the problem, least of them a temporary one before embarking on the long term beach cleaning project. Goa’s coastal villages from Armabol in North Goa to Palolem and Agonda is full of buzz with long time foreign nationals and locals alike joining in beach cleaning exercise. Certainly Lohan and his team can look for inspiration and inputs from these teams based in various parts of Goa and who are into beach cleaning exercise for the last couple of months. “We are the family of Arambol who love and care for our land. We believe that this land belongs to our children and doing our best keeping it clean for them. We believe in education and doing our best to teach, inspire and motivate each other. We are here to take care of our home and ocean that are source of our life, and the temple of our spirits,” says Jade Minjung Kim of Clean Arambol Team On Sunday May 26, Clean Arambol Team were at Sweet Water Lake continuing their project of cleaning Arambol which kicked off in the month of March. “Dear Clean Arambol Family from all over the world. Arambol is ready to transform to clean Arambol, and we are looking for any suggestion that will help Arambol to be waste free, pollution free village with cleanest beach in India. I want to gather all the available resources in the world to make this happen. Together, we can make Arambol clean again,” adds Kim, a Korean born Australian citizen and an yoga practionier based in Armabol, one of the founder member of the movement for Clean Arambol. “Our coastline near Sweetlake urgently need your help before rain takes all the garbage into our ocean. Come and join our Clean Arambol team and be a part of this clean India movement. As part of preparation for cleaning sweetlake before the monsoon, we are looking for used rice bags and used cement bags to remove all the beer bottles from Sweetlake. Together, we can make Sweetlake waste free again.” In Anjuna, yet another coastal village of Goa, Earthday Everyday, is one such group of concerned citizens and local stakeholders that have come forward to help tackle the garbage menace to society. The seed was planted one day in early April this year when Swapnil Naik of Gurubar and Ryan Volado of Bunkd Hostels in Anjuna took it onto themselves to clear up the oil and tar ball mess that washes up on shore every year. With the help of staff they cleared up a small stretch of beach that is in front of and near Gurubar. This small act of awareness didn't go unnoticed and they were contacted by Banglanaatak dot com the India liason for Earthday Network, a global NGO that has started a massive global campaign called The Great Global Cleanup, who in turn invited them to coordinate beach clean up campaign in North Goa... Since then the duo have managed to bring together many other like minded stakeholders and citizens together under the Earthday Everyday banner and so far have cleaned up Anjuna, Vagator Baga and Chapora beaches. “In yoga philosophy and practice we are taught to keep our environment clean. It’s a form of meditation, mental hygiene. It’s called karma yoga, the yoga of service,” says Yash Aswini who runs Be Yoga Bound a yoga studio in Vagator. Elsewhere away from the beaches, Chowgule College of Arts and Science Margao in association with Kafmar Environmental services have romped in Advocate Afroz Shah, a young Indian lawyer from Mumbai, synonymous with the world’s largest beach clean-up project. In October 2015, Shah and his neighbor Harbansh Mathur, an 84-year-old who has since passed away, were frustrated with the piles of decomposing waste that had washed up and completely overwhelmed the city’s Versova beach. Determined to do something about it, the pair started cleaning up the beach themselves. Every weekend since, Shah has inspired volunteers to join him – from slum-dwellers to Bollywood stars, from schoolchildren to politicians. They have been turning up at Versova for what Shah calls "a date with the ocean", but what in reality means labouring in rotting garbage under the scorching Indian sun. Sixty-nine weeks, Shah drew the world’s attention by removing 4,500 tonnes of trash from Versova beach, cleaning 52 toilets and removing trash from creeks with local residents and fishermen. Besides Shah, Prathamesh Maulingkar, a goan footballer and a beauty pageant title holder who won the title of Mister Supranational 2018 will be joining others in the beach cleaning exercise at Colva beach on May 28 from 8 am to 10 am. Kafmar Environmental services, the organization associated with the Colva clean up with the educational institution from South Goa, plans to raise beach goer’s awareness regarding the impact of litter on the beaches and surrounding aquatic habitats. Based in Benaulim, Kafmar is a partnership firm owned by Caesar Fernandes and Dizzy Fernandes, which was started with an aim to provide a clean environment for the future generation. The name Kafmar which is conceived from the names of their children talks of protecting the environment for future generation and will always remain special to them. Kafmar is involved in various activities with social responsibility, the first and main objective is giving life to water bodies in Goa and on a whole to be a part of cleanliness drive in India (Swacch Bharat campaign). They offer Holistic, practical and sustainable solutions to the challenges found in water bodies like rivers, lakes, ponds and creeks left untouched over decades. They motivate and encourage the business community and government bodies to care for the nature and its posterity and ensure it is sustainable for future generations. We would like to assure our clients a cost-effective service. Our move is towards complimenting the natural environment, adding to biodiversity and improving water quality. They belief in Cleaning and Restoration Give back Mother Nature more than what she has lost due to neglect, to the point where the final output is better than the existing situation. If we were to write a cheque to nature to cover the cost of our business activities, what would its value be?” They also plan to take up projects on water and waste management. They work hand in hand with naturists, environmentalists and professionals.
