Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Joint Effort Removes Over 60 Automotive Tires from Bonaire’s Reefs

Recently, a joint effort between sailboat cruisers and the Bonaire National Marine Park resulted in the removal of over 60 automotive tires from the shallows along the shoreline of Kralendijk.

Chief Ranger of the Marine Park, Din Domacasse, attended a meeting in which it was agreed that three park staff members--Juan, Apo, and Polina-- and a park boat would work together with the cruisers to pick up only those tires that had no coral or sponge growth on them.

A survey of the boaters resulted in 100 percent participation among them, as over forty people were organized into teams made up of divers, swimmers, and boat workers. Toucan Diving kindly provided free air fills for the divers. At the close of January, the group worked tirelessly (pun intended!) for three hours to retrieve over sixty tires, which eventually filled a garbage bin, provided by Bonaire’s waste management company, Selibon.

This event was so successful that the cruisers have agreed to complete the cleanup of tires from the remainder of the mooring area and adjacent reef.  STINAPA Bonaire thanks all the participants who made this special cleanup a big success.  (Source:  STINAPA)