The northern tip of Ambergris Caye encompasses the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve. It's an important site for Belize not only because it's where the Belizean barrier reef begins but because it's the nesting area for at least three endangered turtle species: logger head, green and hawksbill turtles. While the area is protected by Belizean law it's not protected against nature's currents that every day wash garbage into this most sensitive area. In an effort to do something about that an expedition headed out to the area on Sunday to clean it up. Alfonso Noble teamed up with Kainie Manuel and Ron Sniffin at the San Pedro Sun to put together this report.
Alfonso Noble Reporting,
Equipped with garbage bags gloves and a great deal of willpower, students from San Pedro High School visited the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve. They were here not for fun, but on a mission to clean up scenes like these where garbage the lined the beaches. And there was everything plastic bottles, plastic cup, old nets and buoys and even this mega rope.
Alicia Eck is the reserve's manager. She says that on this Meso-American Barrier Reef day the goal was to clean up beaches on Robles Point to prepare for the upcoming turtle-nesting season which begins at the end of April and runs through to September.
Alicia Eck, Reserve's Manager
"We want to just prepare the beach a little bit for them because they have a hard time getting in, climbing all the way up. Sometimes they go into the bushes and they dig and they lay their eggs. To facilitate them coming up, to make it easier for them, we try to do a cleanup every year."
Kainie Manuel, San Pedro Sun
"How many turtles do we see yearly?
Alicia Eck,
"For last year on this beach alone we had nineteen. It was split between the green turtles and the loggerheads and between the two beaches, the Rocky Point Beach and the Robles Point Beach, we had a total of thirty nests. Eleven were found on the other one, on the other beach. We also had, which is rare, but we're seeing it more every year is two hawksbill nest."
And that's the importance of cleaning up the beaches and Eck says its an undertaking that they do at least once a year because of the constant inward flow of garbage that is not necessarily from Belize.
Alicia Eck,
"It is not really our Belizean garbage, it comes from Mexico, it comes from Barbados, from Honduras, from Guatemala, it comes from all over because of the currents and a lot comes from off the cruise ships too."
But no matter who's garbage it is the importance of the beaches makes it necessary for it to be cleaned up. On this day it was a group of students including independent student Jim Sniffin and Humberto Torres from the San Pedro High School.
Jim Sniffin, San Pedro High School Student
"It's a never ending story but at least it makes you feel good to help the environment and there is still a lot more but just getting most of it is good."
Humberto Torres, San Pedro High School Student
"I would like to give to the community you see. It is my island, I like to keep it clean, keep it as best as possible and its something to do, better than being out there giving trouble."
Kainie Manuel,
"As part of Meso-American Barrier Reef Day this cleanup campaign was organized but we are inviting the general public to take an active role in protecting our environment. One way to do it is putting garbage in its right place, otherwise it could end up in one of the beaches. From Ambergris Caye for the San Pedro Sun and Channel 7, I am Kainie Manuel."
Over 40 garbage bags full of beach debris were collected. And now to put a downer on things but it is only a fraction, and participants say there's so much garbage there that it hardly made a difference.
