Cox’s Bazar Correspondent: 1,200 kg of plastic waste has been removed from the beach of St. Martin’s Island in a clean-up drive. A two-day clean-up drive was carried out by a voluntary organization named Keokradong Bangladesh in collaboration with Unilever Bangladesh.
The two-day drive is underway on the beach of the island on Friday and Saturday. The Bangladesh Coast Guard, local people, various professionals from all over the country, and students of St. Martin’s School Madrasa participated in it. About 1,200 kg of plastic waste was removed from St. Martin’s.
On Saturday (December 21) morning of this two-day drive, various types of non-biodegradable garbage, including plastic bottles and plastic packets, were collected from various points on the alleys and beach of St. Martin. A voluntary organization named Keokradong Bangladesh led the drive. Earlier, such a drive was implemented on the island under the initiative of the organization. This is their 13th initiative.
St. Martin Union Parishad Chairman Mujibur Rahman said a voluntary organization called Keokradong Bangladesh is organizing a cleanup drive in St. Martin this year as well. This is a very beneficial work for St. Martin Island.
And thousands of tourists come to our island every year to enjoy its natural beauty.
Various types of waste accumulate on the beach due to locals and tourists. Fortunately, it has been possible to maintain the beauty of the island due to the commendable initiatives of organizations like Keokradong Bangladesh in cleaning the beach.
Keokradong Bangladesh Coordinator Muntasir Mamun said, due to geographical reasons, the final destination of plastic thrown away in Bangladesh is most often any water body. And if the plastic lying on a small island like St. Martin is not brought to the mainland, its consequences will not be limited to this island only. It will spread to the Bay of Bengal. Our small effort was to limit that consequence as much as possible according to our ability.
He further said, “St. Martin’s Island is a wonderful example of the natural beauty of Bangladesh. Thousands of tourists flock to this island every year due to its beauty. Along with enjoying the beauty of the island, it is also our responsibility to ensure its conservation and protection. To this end, we have been organizing a coastal cleanup campaign every year for the past 13 years, and the number of participants is increasing every year. I believe that if we all work together, we can make not only St. Martin’s but the entire world cleaner.”
