PHILIPSBURG:--- On Sunday the 13th of August the Nature Foundation will be organizing a beach cleanup on Simpson Bay Beach as part of the ‘Save our Sharks’ project in collaboration with the Boskalis Beach Clean Up tour. The Boskalis tour is an initiative of the North Sea Foundation where business, consumers, civil society, and government clean the entire Dutch coast. This year the cleanups will be held throughout the entire kingdom for the first time as all the Dutch Caribbean islands will be participating.
The Foundation is looking for volunteers to help clean up the St Maarten beaches. “Young or old everyone is encouraged to join the Nature Foundation and help to preserve nature, marine life and wildlife on St Maarten; “We must all be aware that as an island our garbage ends up at our beaches and in our ocean; we have the responsibility together to keep our beaches clean and safe,” commented Nature Foundation Project Manager Melanie Meijer Zu-Schlochtern.
It is estimated that more than 5 trillion pieces of plastic float in the oceans with disastrous consequences for marine life. Worldwide, coasts are flooded with plastic waste and many marine animals get stuck in plastic bags and packaging or mistake plastic for food with often deadly effects. A recent report states that in 2050 the oceans will contain more plastic than fish.
Research from 2015 shows that 48% of fish tested had plastic in their stomach, reason enough to join the Beach Cleanup from the Nature Foundation!
On Sunday the 13th of August the cleanup will start at Simpson Bay Beach at 8 am (meeting point Karakter Beach Bar), after the cleanup, there will be drinks, stickers, and goodies for all participants. Interested persons can leave a message on the Nature Foundation Facebook Page
