BFAR-7 urges public to dispose of face masks, other clinical wastes properly

MINERVA BC NEWMAN

CEBU CITY -- The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR-7)-Central Visayas urged everyone to dispose of face masks, plastics and other clinical materials properly and refrained from throwing them anywhere as these ended up in coasts and oceans, polluting the seas, rivers and forests.

BFAR-7 posed this call/reminder during the International Coastal Cleanup Day it organized and conducted in eight separate coastal areas in the region from September 13 to 17 where they recorded more than 772 kilograms of garbage collected including face masks, clinical gloves, single-use plastics, plastic containers, food wrappers, glass bottles, diapers, worn-out garments, tin cans, and Styrofoam.

Children of fisherfolks from Barangay Cogtong, Candijay, Bohol initiated their own coastal cleanup on September 17 and BFAR noted disposable face masks, were largely part of the wastes they gathered.

The provincial fishery offices and the field facilities of BFAR-7 initiated the cleanup drive in their respective areas to mark the celebration of the 58th Fish Conservation Week, which is an annual event done every third week of September.

The BFAR-7 Ubay Brackish water Fish Farm in Ubay town in Bohol kicked off the weeklong observance with the holding of the coastal cleanup on September 13-14 gathering 15 sacks or 375 kilograms of garbage, which were later on hauled by the Ubay Municipal Solid Waste Management for proper disposal.

Three simultaneous cleanups were also done on September 14 in Bohol and Cebu provinces with the BFAR-7 Bohol Provincial Fishery Office with the BFAR-7 Central Bangus Hatchery that collected 10 sacks or 40 kilograms of plastic wastes in Pangangan Island in Calape, Bohol.

The BFAR-7 in Clarin Freshwater Fish Farm (CFFF) in Clarin, Bohol and the BFAR-7 Multi-Species Hatchery (MSH) in Medellin, Cebu organized simultaneous cleanup drives in their respective coastal communities.

The CFFF gathered about 20 kilograms of garbage at Caluwasan Creek in Barangay Caluwasan while MSH-Medellin collected more than 100 kilograms of garbage at Sitio San Roque in Barangay Kawit.

The BFAR-7 in Carmen Brackish water Fish Farm in Carmen, Cebu did its coastal cleanup on September 15 and it gathered 75 kilograms of garbage picked from the coastal area near the station in Barangay Cogon East.

The BFAR-7 in Negros Oriental Provincial Fishery Office counted 15 sacks of garbage, which have an estimated weight of 100 kilograms, during the cleanup it facilitated in Sitio Canday-ong, Barangay Calindagan, Dumaguete City.

The BFAR-7 Central Visayas Multi-Species Nursery Demonstration and Training Center in Calape and the BFAR 7 - Multi-Species Hatchery in Ubay, gathered three sacks or about 20 kilograms of plastic waste and 10 sacks or around 42 kilograms of garbage and debris, respectively, in the coastal areas near the stations. (Photos: BFAR7/Google Images)