World Ocean Day Clean-up 

The Zero Waste Foundation, supported by Don’t Waste, held a World Ocean Day clean-up at the Blue Lagoon beach in Durban, South Africa to spread awareness for the importance of protecting our ocean. The team was delighted to commemorate the day by joining forces with WILDOCEANS a programme of WILDTRUST, Pick ‘n Pay People ‘n Planet, Green Corridors and the Youth for Marine Protected Areas (Y4MPAs).

The clean-up aimed to take collective action to revitalise our ocean together with our partners, in line with the theme for World Ocean Day, ‘Revitalization: collective action for the ocean’. It also aimed to drive awareness for the need to advance Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in South Africa. Globally, the 2022 conservation action is focused on protecting at least 30% of our blue planet by the year 2030. Currently only 5% of the ocean around the South African coastline is protected and there is an initial goal to increase this to at least 10%.

Highlights from the Clean-up

The collaborative efforts on the day from the partners and the public who joined in was remarkable. The cleanup produced 86 bags of rubbish (the equivalent of 26 wheelie bins). The total weight of all the rubbish collected and removed from the beach was 769.26kg. The cleanup was a great testament to what is possible when we collaborate together and become custodians of the ocean.

Photos from the World Ocean Day Clean-up:

Protect the environment: Partner with us

Protecting the ocean is important, not only for World Ocean Day, but every day of the year. More needs to be done to educate individuals and businesses on appropriate ways to reduce and reuse waste at the source (Read: Plastic Free July Tips) so that it does not end up polluting our natural environment. The Zero Waste Foundation has a mandate to organise and facilitate clean-up initiatives in order safeguard and protect our environment. The foundation recognises the importance of working together with businesses, organisations, communities and citizens from all walks of life to facilitate clean ups and promote public recycling.

We welcome partnership opportunities to grow and expand our impact. Get in touch via email or visit Zero Waste Foundation Website for more information on how to get involved.