Women take part in an event to clear garbage from Lampung bay in the Sukaraja village, Bandar Lampung on Feb 21, 2019. (Photo: AFP) Jakarta (VNA) – Hundreds of Indonesians came together to clean up a beach in Indonesia on February 21, contributing to raising public awareness of marine waste in the country.
Some 200 students, military personnel, and locals scoured a beach on the southern tip of Sumatra island, picking up heaps of plastic, discarded flip flops, and other debris.
In just over three hours, the group collected 30 tonnes of rubbish from the coast in Lampung province.
The yearly campaign was first started in 2010 after huge amounts of rubbish were found in the fishing nets of local fishermen who made their living off the sea.
Other rubbish clearing campaigns have been launched across Indonesia, the world's second-biggest contributor to marine debris after China.
In holiday hotspot Bali, the problem has become so bad that officials declared a garbage emergency two years ago after a stretch of coast became swamped with rubbish.
Last year, a sperm whale was found dead in a marine park off Sulawesi island with 115 plastic cups and 25 plastic bags in its stomach.
The Indonesian government has pledged to reduce marine plastic waste by 70 percent by 2025. –VNA
VNA
