DENR urges localized cleanup to avoid virus

CEBU, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has encouraged the public for localized clean-up drives in today’s International Coastal Clean-up to prevent exposure to Covid-19 virus.

While the local government units have been doing their respective activities, the DENR is encouraging the rest to conduct localized clean-up drives instead in their respective homes.

This strategy is in line with this year’s ICC theme: “Safe Oceans Start at Home”.

As such, everyone is invited to participate in the celebration of the ICC 2020. Participants can join as an individual, family, barkada or within a small community or as an institution or organization.

To be officially counted in this clean-up drive, participants will have to register via https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScBJJxfC-HJ7NGKGQFNjM4m1z8553gi6XpX8nrKItzhIfBicw/viewform

Participants are given the liberty to select their own clean-up site including their own backyard, company premises, public places or nearest water body from residence or office such as rivers, esteros, and coastal areas.

For those who want to join the clean-up in water bodies and public places are advised to coordinate directly to the LGU concerned especially on the final disposal of the collected wastes.

During the actual clean-up activity, everyone is expected to observe the minimum health standard set including wearing of face mask, social distancing and later on, washing of hands with soap and disinfect with alcohol as well as the proper disposal of used gloves and masks.

Aside from that, participants are also encouraged to wear royal blue shirts and are expected to download and use the ICC data card in recording the collected waste. The said form will be available through email after a participant registered online.

After the activity, participants will have to upload the collaged photo of their activity as well as the ICC data card in the DENR Central Visayas Page together with the following details as caption: Location of clean-up site, name of individual or family (use family name) or group/company, number of clean-up participants, top 5 most collected type of waste and the total volume of collected waste with hash tag #InternationalCoastalCleanup2020, #DENR7ICC2020 and #SafeOceansStartatHome

The first 300 participants who have completed their upload today will receive an ICC face mask that will be redeemed at the DENR-7 Regional Office located at Sudlon, Lahug, Cebu City. — GMR (FREEMAN)