Project AWARE Week 2019!

It’s been a busy week here on Bonaire! Project AWARE week 2019 has come to a close and the dive shop I work for here on the island hosted five cleanup dives across the leeward side of the island. We host a lot of cleanup dives throughout the year and the results on this side of the island have been consistent…more industry equals more trash.

Last week, our cleanups north and south of town found very little trash which is terrific news for the reef here and its inhabitants! In town was a different story. There’s a lot of fishing line which is particularly damaging to the reef as the surge and current moves it back and forth scraping it against fragile corals and sponges. Cans and bottles were also plentiful.

Speaking of bottles. I found this heartbreaking sight on a morning walk in town a few weeks ago. This sharptail eel was just doing what eels do – putting its head into crevasses looking for food. But this wasn’t a crevasse, it was a glass bottle and once in, it couldn’t back out of it like it would a reef structure and likely struggled in terror until it finally passed. We can do better!

How can you help underwater?

Divers! We need your help! Only divers can survey the trash on the ocean floor. Cataloging what kind of trash is being found and where is the key to developing solutions for larger debris removal efforts.

• Get the Dive Against Debris specialty before embarking on cleanup dives to learn proper removal procedures. We don’t want to do damage while trying to do good!
• Make every dive a survey dive! If you dive in places you rarely find trash, report that too – every data point is important in the fight against debris.
• Band together with your local shop and fellow divers and adopt a dive site! By adopting a site, you commit to cleaning it monthly and logging the findings. It’s really amazing to watch how a site changes under consistent care.
• Spread the word and educate others.

How can you help on land?

Do you live far from the ocean or not a diver? No worries, everyone can get involved! It doesn’t matter if you live hundreds of miles from the ocean or on a tiny rock in the Caribbean like me. Everything we do in our daily lives ultimately impacts the ocean.

• Participate in a cleanup event near you. Can’t find one? Make one! Spread the word and educate and inspire others to standup for the environment.
• Use less. Catalog what you throw away in your household and evaluate it for reusable replacements. Cut as much plastic out as possible by opting for more friendly packaging.
• Share conversation starters on your social media pages. This video from Project AWARE is a great overview of how trash ends up in our oceans.

Together, we can make a difference! Team up to clean up!