Over the weekend, the Regional Secretary for the Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change, Susana Prada, was present at a second clean up operation in the port of Caniçal. The first rubbish collection took place in September 2020, where 600 kg of rubbish, including tyres, batteries, glass, plastic and iron were collected.
During the clean up operation, Susana Prada, took the opportunity to launch a new environmental initiative, bringing together, on a voluntary basis, divers and members of the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation, the Regional Agency for the Development of Research, Technology and Innovation (ARDITI), Madeira Water and Waste ( ARM), and SANAS Madeira.
In a statement, the Regional Secretary for the Environment said: “We will not rest until we can resolve the problem of marine litter. ” She then went on to say that the Regional Government has a well-designed strategy to combat coastal rubbish and that their strategy will address three main areas:
- Creation of population wide marine litter awareness campaigns.
- Developing research projects through partnerships to increase knowledge about the origin and type of rubbish polluting the island’s coastal waters.
- Promoting clean up operations throughout the archipelago, with volunteers and also through contracted services.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
