Cagliari, among the waste recovered at Poetto there is also a pair of fake legs

MEDSEA Foundation: over 150 volunteers engaged in the new edition of “Puliamo La Sella!”

Waste collection in Cagliari: Sunday 16 June the sixth edition of the “Let’s clean the saddle!” event took place. Over 150 volunteers recovered almost a ton of waste from land and sea. Plastics, sea equipment, an entire dismantled boat, fake Halloween legs, PC screens and building materials were collected during the event organized by the Foundation MEDSEA. The event saw the collaboration with numerous aquatic sports associations operating at Poetto: “We collected almost a ton of waste in two hours”he said Giulia Eremitaresponsible for communications at MEDSEA.

Cagliari and waste: the commitment of the MEDSEA foundation

The event, which began in Marina Piccola and continued along the coast of Cagliari for waste collection, faced difficult weather and sea conditions, with gusts of sirocco and rough seas. Despite these challenges, the amount of waste collected was similar to previous years, with approximately one ton of materials removed: “We must also take responsibility for other people’s waste, without thinking that the Municipality can always do it for us”, declared Giulia Eremita.

Among the people involved in the collection there were also many tourists and children. The annual event aims to promote respect for marine and coastal habitats. Around 80% of plastic in the seas comes from inadequate waste management. This year, the sixth edition of Puliamo la Sella! was dedicated to cetaceans, marine mammals seriously threatened by plastic pollution.

Laura Pintore, Marine Wildlife Expert of WWF Italy, held an in-depth discussion highlighting that 75% of cetacean species in the Mediterranean are threatened. This scenario requires urgent interventions to protect these species from risks of collisions with maritime traffic, entanglement in fishing gear, noise and chemical pollution, and climate change.

New collaboration between MEDSEA and WWF Italy

During the event, MEDSEA and WWF Italy have announced a new collaboration for the protection of Sardinia’s marine-coastal ecosystems. The signed memorandum of intent aims to strengthen common commitment through research initiatives, environmental education and sustainable management of natural resources. Among the planned activities, there are monitoring and research projects on cetaceans, development of management tools for Marine Protected Areas and promotion of responsible whale watching activities.

The MEDSEA Foundation carries out various education and awareness activities for example in schools but not only: “We work on wide-ranging European projects that concern the reduction and recycling of plastic to create a short supply chain for the reuse of plastic, through 3D printing”, Giulia Eremita said.

Interview by Fabio Manca
Caffè Corretto dated 18-06-2024

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