KOCHI: Oceans have become the biggest dumping grounds for plastic waste. It is said that a huge deposit of plastic waste can be found in the depths of the ocean just 4km off the Kerala coast. Plastic waste poses a danger not only to marine animals but also to human life. Recognising the need for action, the NGO Plan@earth has joined hands with a few schools in Ernakulam district along with the Network for Fish Quality Management and Sustainable Fishing (NETFISH) – Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), Fisheries Department, fishing boat owners and Munambam Harbour Society to implement DROP (Drive to Recover Ocean Plastics) project.
“The issue of plastic pollution is a big one,” says Mujeeb Mohammed, president of Plan@earth. While venturing into the sea, fishermen often carry their food in disposable plastic containers. “These fishermen set out to the sea for more than a week. They don’t have any provision to dispose of the containers and end up throwing them into the sea. When they haul in their nets, they find that plastic makes up more than half of the catch,” he adds.
The fishermen are forced to throw the waste back into the sea, notes Mujeeb. Plastic waste also makes its way into the sea from the rivers and other inland water bodies, besides the floods that seem to occur very frequently.
“It can be said that around 11 tonnes of the plastic waste get dumped in the sea every day,” he says.
“So, we thought of providing the fishermen with net bags, which they can take along with them. The waste that they get in their nets can be transferred to these bags and brought ashore. We then collect the bags and send the plastic waste for recycling.”
Though the project found wide acceptance among fishermen, another problem has cropped up. “We found ourselves short of funds to buy the nets,” he says. They decided to get the help of the student community to generate funds. “The aim was not only to get financial help but also educate the students about their responsibility towards the environment,” adds Mujeeb.
The students of Rajagiri Public School, Global Public School and the Choice School were roped in to do their bit by donating old newspapers to generate funds for the cause. “The students were asked to place the old newspapers in the drop box placed at the school by Plan@earth every Wednesday. These newspapers were then collected, weighed and sold by the volunteers from the NGO. The funds collected went into the project, which has been implemented in Kochi on a pilot basis,” explains Mujeeb.
“So far, the newspapers donated by the students have generated funds that are sufficient to run the project till March 2023.” Lakshmi Ramachandran, the mentor of Global Public School, says the students are enthusiastic about collecting the funds for the project. “We have a system in place that felicitates the class that collects the maximum quantity of newspapers. The project is indeed beneficial for students as it makes them aware of the need to protect the environment,” she adds.
Anitha Premnath, who is in charge of the DROP project at Rajagiri Public School, says volunteers from Classes VIII, IX and XI visited the Munambam harbour, where the students interacted with the fishermen and officials of Plan@earth. “The students then handed over two nets purchased using the fund raised through recycling old newspapers. We feel happy and proud to be a part of such a great initiative,” she adds.