On September 16, 2023, For Earth's Sake (FES) volunteers were among the 5 million volunteers from across the ten regions of Cameroon to clean up the nation as part of the World Cleanup Day (WCD), the largest peacetime civic movement in human history. WCD coincides with International Coastal Cleanup. FES thus aimed for a two-in-one Inland and Coastal cleanup event.
FES partnered with local authorities and Port Authority of Douala for this event. The cleanup covered the region known as "Base Navale", located at the port area in Douala, the largest city and economic capital of Cameroon. The cleanup focused on removing litter from the street, cleanup the street gutters that serve as a drainage system, and also to get rid of the plastic waste from the coast of the Wouri River, whose magnificent presence makes this area a little more of a place for recreation. The Wouri River estuary forms a large natural harbor and hosts Central Africa's largest port.
Not even the gloomy weather on this given Saturday could kill the spirit of the enthusiastic and dedicated FES team of volunteers. They were divided into teams and assigned to different locations along the coast and on the street, equipped with gloves, bags, rakes, and other tools to collect and sort the trash.
The results were impressive: in just about three hours, the team had cleaned a 600 metres stretch of road, collected more than 61 Kg of plastic waste, removed 932.46kg organic waste from street gutters.
The most common items were similar to those found globally during the 2022 International Coastal Cleanup5, where cigarette butts topped the list with nearly 1.9 million collected worldwide. The trash was then transported to a designated site for further sorting and recycling or disposal.
Then organic waste was transported to a designated sight, where it was collected by the Douala City Council. The plastic waste was collected by Ecogreen, an affiliate structure to Source du Pays, a company that produces mineral water and soft drinks.
The FES WCD Inland and Coastal cleanup was not only a way to improve the cleanliness and beauty of the chosen location for the event, but also a way to raise awareness and educate the public about the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling waste. FES expresses its gratitude to all the volunteers who participated in the event and contributed to its success. We look forward to an even greater impact as we join the next World Cleanup Day on September 15, 2024.
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