Approximately 109 tons of waste were collected during the recent Save the Puerto Princesa Bays event last Saturday in the coastal area covered by Barangay Bagong Silang, which was participated in by about 1,717 individuals.
The total waste collected during the event amounted to 98,905 kilograms. The breakdown of waste collected from different barangays is as follows: Barangay Bagong Sikat contributed 39,050 kilos; Barangay Bagong Silang, 32,280 kilos; Barangay Pagkakaisa, 15,735 kilos; Barangay Mandaragat, 5,120 kilos; the Irawan/Sandiwa Tiniguiban area, 3,145 kilos; Tagburos Aplaya, 2,935 kilos; Sta. Lourdes (Honda Bay), 545 kilos; and Barangay San Jose, 95 kilos.
Barangay Captain Rene Balacanta, during the event on January 6, accepted the challenge to continue the beach cleaning efforts in their area. Bagong Silang is one of several areas encompassing the city, and it has become a major venue for the Ironman 70.3 Puerto Princesa as well as the site of the dragon boat race festival.
This sixth edition of the save the bays initiative coincided with the launch of the Kalinga at Inisyatiba para sa Malinis na Bayan or Kalinisan sa Bagong Pilipinas Program by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
During the launching of the Kalinisan sa Bagong Pilipinas Program, City DILG Director Eufracio Forones emphasized the importance of the activity in raising awareness among citizens and leaders at the barangay, municipal, and city levels about the value of cleanliness in the community, particularly in saving the ocean.
“Malaking porsiyento ng basurang nako-contribute sa ocean ay galing sa Pilipinas kaya hamon sa ating lahat na maisalba at malinis ito. Swerte lang rin tayo sa Puerto Princesa dahil mayroong inisyatibo na ang ating alkalde para dito at nagiging consistent tayo sa ating goal na malinis ang dalampasigan,” he said.
Mayor Lucilo Bayron, meanwhile, stated that the successful execution of the Kalinisan program shows support for the DILG. Consequently, the sixth installment of save the bays was particularly designed to aid in carrying out the directives of the department.
“Mahalaga sa atin na mapanatili ang kalinisan at masaya akong nakikitang mainit ang inyong suporta sa ating mga gawain sa paglilinis ng ating coastal areas. Lagi kong sinasabi na hindi kakayanin to na mayor lang ang gagawa nito kundi kailangan ng tulong at pagkakaisa ng bawat mamamayan, kaya salamat dahil nariyan kayo palagi,” he said.
