The first and final coastal cleanup at Pulau Semakau in 2014

Pulau Semakau will be closed for about a year for the development of the Phase 2 lagoon from March 2014. Before that happens, a cleanup was conducted in Sat 15 Feb 2014 by 96 volunteers, 71 HSBC staff and 25 nature volunteers.

Ron Yeo the coordinator for this cleanup, who is also the ICCS Site Captain for Pulau Semakau., reports:

“Generally there are several types of solid waste found along the Pualu Semakau shore:

1. Things left behind by the previous islanders, including refrigerator shells, sofas and other bulky things.
2. Trash discarded by the illegal fishermen, such as nets and ropes.
3. Trash brought in by the currents, including small items like bottles, bags, styrofoam and toys and larger items such as chemical drums.

For this cleanup, I suggested volunteers focus on the smaller plastic trash in order to remove as much trash as possible out of the forest rather expending energy on just a few heavy bulky trash items.

We removed a total of 517.5kg of plastic trash.

This as an excellent job by everyone involved. Semakau requires a long trek to remove trash after a cleanup and is littered with many small items. Coastal cleanups like these which are conducted throughout the year are much needed and much appreciated. Find out more about Year-Round Cleanups.

Well done folks!

All aboard!

Ron Yeo briefing HSBC staff and other volunteers

The trash awaits

Hard at work during the afternoon low tide

Moving trash to the Trash Disposal Point

Happy faces at the beach!

Thanks to Fung Tze Kwan an Ron Yeo for photos!

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For the record, the programme for the afternoon cleanup is listed below:

1.30pm Meet at Marina South Pier
1.45pm Briefing for non-HSBC volunteers and prepare for departure
3.00pm Arrive at Pulau Semakau
3.15pm General briefing and change into appropriate footwear
3.30pm Bus ride to shore area and start of cleanup
5.30pm End cleanup & weigh trash; Start intertidal exploration
7.00pm End intertidal walk and carry trash to main road
7.15pm Wash up and bus ride to NEA office
7.30pm Dinner
9.00pm Depart from Semakau
10.00pm Arrive at Marina South Pier