Participants of National Clean Up Month flock Aboitiz Cleanergy Park

To participate in the National Clean Up Month, various organizations conducted simultaneous coastal clean up activities at the Aboitiz Cleanergy Park in the month of September.

According to the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines, the month of September is declared as National Cleanup Month by virtue of Proclamation No. 244., while Presidential Proclamation No.470 also designates the 3rd Saturday of September as National Clean-Up Day.

One of the organizations that participated in the National Clean Up Month is the University of the Philippines Mindanao (UP Mindanao), which has conducted various research at the coastal area of the eight-hectare ecological park.

Last year, we developed an artificial intelligence (AI) to detect trash and we came here only to take photos of the trash to train the AI. Today, we’re collecting and taking out the trash instead of just taking photos,” Vladimer Kobayashi, a professor from UPMin said in an interview.

According to Kobayashi, most of the trash detected by their AI is single-use plastics such as plastic sachets. “It is very important to implement solid waste management and to discourage the use of single-use plastics,” Kobayashi added after analyzing the results of their research at the park.

The Aboitiz Cleanergy Park, managed by AboitizPower subsidiary Davao Light and Power Co., Inc., and Aboitiz Foundation, Inc., the social development arm of the Aboitiz Group supports scientific studies for its management programs and welcomes students and the academe to conduct more researches and experiments that can strengthen its conservations efforts.

The Paralegal Volunteers Organization of the Rizal Memorial Colleges - Law Department also joined UPMin’s coastal clean up activity. “I participated in a tree planting activity here at Punta Dumalag ten years ago. I see that there has been a huge difference ever since Davao Light and Aboitiz Foundation started their efforts to protect the critically endangered [hawksbill] sea turtles and the island itself,” one of the law students said in an interview.

Another group who visited the park are the members of the Rotary Club of East Davao. “Every year, we conduct a coastal clean up in September during the [International] Coastal Clean Up Day. I actually noticed that there is less trash today. I don’t know if this is an effect of the coastal clean up efforts of various organizations but I believe the number one reason is how we educate people about proper waste disposal,” Jaime Sabino, President of the Rotary Club of East Davao said.

Lastly, the Ecoteneo of the Ateneo de Davao University, conducted a brand audit after their coastal clean up, to identify the sources of trash. Their study can be used as a basis for other environmental activities such as information dissemination campaigns to target groups that can help address trash problems.

Other organizations that conducted a coastal clean up activity at the park are the Institute of Electronics Engineers of the Philippines (IECEP), Davao Light team members from the Customer Retail Services Department (CRSD), and Coca-Cola Philippines - Davao 1 Plant employees.

According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), there is a need to create solutions to the problems of solid waste litter in coastal areas as 80% of the more than 100 million Filipinos depend on fish for their protein requirements. Thus, coastal clean ups are important not just for the environment but also for the proper nutrition of all Filipinos.