BEACH CLEANING
RATIONALE
Beaches are an important part of life in coastal cities because, in addition to the wide range of recreational opportunities they offer, they provide unique habitats for a variety of plants and animals, serve as a buffer against strong winds and waves, and help to promote economic activity - important for our community and surroundings.
However, as the number of people on the beaches increases, the amount of garbage also increases since, in many cases, the waste is forgotten and blown away by the wind, generating serious problems.
At the national level, Argentina is currently among the 30 countries that throw the most waste into the sea. According to the latest 2019 Marine Coastal Litter Census carried out by the Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina and other coastal NGOs, the types of contaminants most found on the beaches were: cigarette butts (27%); fragments (20%), wrappers (8.1%) and bags (6.2%) of plastics; Styrofoam (8.6%), bottles and other containers (6.9%) and caps (6.2%). Of the most polluting residue, which are cigarette butts, 16,325 units were found. An alarming fact if one considers that each one of them can contaminate between eight and 10 liters of salt water and up to 50 liters if it is fresh water www.vidasilvestre.org.ar
These statistics have a fundamental value to understand the behavior and origin of the garbage that is found on the beaches of our locality and, therefore, to make us aware that the majority of the garbage is generated by our own waste and its modification requires the commitment of everyone, for a more responsible consumption that prevents this waste from ending up on our coasts, affecting environmental and human health.
Faced with this problem, concrete actions arise, such as beach cleanups, which teach by example and bring together many volunteers with a common cause.
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At the national level, Argentina is currently among the 30 countries that throw the most waste into the sea. According to the latest 2019 Marine Coastal Litter Census carried out by the Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina and other coastal NGOs, the types of contaminants most found on the beaches were: cigarette butts (27%); fragments (20%), wrappers (8.1%) and bags (6.2%) of plastics; Styrofoam (8.6%), bottles and other containers (6.9%) and caps (6.2%). Of the most polluting residue, which are cigarette butts, 16,325 units were found. An alarming fact if one considers that each one of them can contaminate between eight and 10 liters of salt water and up to 50 liters if it is fresh water www.vidasilvestre.org.ar
These statistics have a fundamental value to understand the behavior and origin of the garbage that is found on the beaches of our locality and, therefore, to make us aware that the majority of the garbage is generated by our own waste and its modification requires the commitment of everyone, for a more responsible consumption that prevents this waste from ending up on our coasts, affecting environmental and human health.
Faced with this problem, concrete actions arise, such as beach cleanups, which teach by example and bring together many volunteers with a common cause.
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