Micronesia leaders call for action on plastic pollution

Koror- Micronesia is taking the lead in raising awareness of the devastating impact of waste, especially plastics on the world's oceans and marine life, with a Cleanup Day set for Sep 13.

Called the Micronesian Cleanup Day, the initiative was adopted by the Micronesian chief executives of Palau, Guam, CNMI, the Marshall Islands, and the FSM states of Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae during the 25th Micronesian Island Forum (MIF) held in Weno, Chuuk in July.

"The Leaders declared a Micronesian Cleanup Day to be scheduled on September 13, 2019, and to be orchestrated simultaneously on all Micronesian islands,” MIF communique said.

Participating states also include the Micronesian island countries of Kiribati and Nauru were invited to join the group and could help expand the cleanup to include a large part of the Pacific Ocean.

According to Surfer Against Sewage website, In 1950, the world’s population of 2.5 billion produced 1.5 million tons of plastic; in 2016, a global population of more than 7 billion people produced over 320 million tons of plastic.

By the time it's 2034, plastics produced would have doubled.It also added that approximately 8 million pieces of plastic pollution find their way into our oceans everyday.

In June, kids join the coastal clean-up in southern Peleliu State in celebration of 2019 World Oceans Day. Photo supplied by Office of the President, Palau. dd