Heavy Metal Lead Pollution - Fishline Lead Drop is the most common pollutant in the seabed

Municipal Environmental Volunteer Association organized coastal and seabed cleaning yesterday to clean up 2.1 tons of garbage.

Fishing gear left by fishing enthusiasts has become the latest pollutant and killer on the seabed.

Wen/Tuben reporter Xu Jin and Xu Ting

Dressed in diving suits, carrying oxygen cylinders, once dived into the sea floor, once to shore the net pocket filled with various sundries... Yesterday morning, near the Black Rock Reef, the seashore in front of Zhangzi Island teaching building of Dalian Ocean University, the reporter saw such a scene.

These people are not diving and recreation, they are participating in the "Dalian GEF SGP Seabed Garbage Survey and Coastal Cleaning Public Welfare Activity" organized by Dalian Environmental Volunteer Association to clean up the seabed garbage. Tang Zailin, the office director of Municipal Environmental Volunteers Association, told reporters that about 500 volunteers participated in the activities yesterday, not only to clean up submarine garbage, but also to clean up the coastal environment.

Lead fall from fishline pollutes the ocean

Yesterday was a rare sunny day. However, this glorious sun for volunteers at the seaside to participate in environmental cleaning, but it means a difficult "baking" experience. At 9:00 a.m., the "GEF SGP Seabed Waste Investigation and Coastal Cleaning Public Welfare Activity" organized by the Municipal Environmental Volunteer Association opened, and the volunteers immediately began to be busy in two ways... More than 20 volunteers from Dalian Deep Diving Engineering Co., Ltd. wear professional diving suits and carry oxygen cylinders to clean up underwater garbage. Nearly 500 volunteers from Dalian Ocean University, Dalian University of Technology, Tede Coal Network Co., Ltd. and Wal-Mart Co., Ltd. are working on the shore.

As divers went ashore again and again, net bags filled with submarine garbage were brought up. Reporters saw that there were wine bottles and plastic bags in the net pockets, but most of them were lead drops and fishing lines for fishing. There were dozens of lead drops in each net pocket. "Lead drop itself is a heavy metal pollutant, and fishing line may entangle marine organisms, causing fish death." Tang said that with the "fishing fever" warming up in recent years, many fishing enthusiasts inadvertently left plumbs and fishing lines on the bottom of the sea, which has become the latest pollutants and killers of marine life. "Accidental plunge of lead fishing line is unavoidable. We will continue to organize similar underwater cleaning. At the same time, it also appeals to fishing enthusiasts to be careful when enjoying the pleasure of fishing and try to avoid such a situation.

Clean up 2.1 tons of garbage in 2 hours

While underwater work is busy, people on the shore are not idle. Reporters saw that a large amount of household waste was piled up on the shore, and volunteers immediately buried themselves in cleaning up, regardless of sunscreen. Many children take part in activities under the leadership of their parents. Led by his mother, 11-year-old Zhan Yurui became a little volunteer for environmental protection. In an interview with reporters, the teenager was picking up cigarette butts on the shore with a long clamp. The way children clean up their garbage in the scorching sun obviously infected the people around them. Many people fishing and sightseeing at the seaside saw this scene and were embarrassed to throw the remaining cigarette ends on the ground.

Reporters in the interview learned that the third Saturday in September is International Coastal Cleaning Day, and this year is the 25th International Coastal Cleaning Day. Director Tang said that he was very gratified that our city's environmental volunteers and all walks of life participated in marine environmental protection in a hands-on way.

At the event site, besides collecting and cleaning beach garbage, the volunteers also classified and weighed the garbage according to eight categories under the guidance of experts, and analyzed the source of garbage. Director Tang said that this would play a positive reference role for the government and other administrative departments in formulating marine environmental protection policies and laws. Subsequently, the sorted garbage was transported by forklift trucks and two garbage trucks provided by the Shahekou District Urban Construction Bureau. During the two-hour campaign, volunteers cleaned up 2.1 tons of coastal and submarine garbage.

This project is supported by the United Nations.

Reporters learned from the Municipal Environmental Volunteer Association that the pollution of solid waste in the beach of our city's seaside parks is serious in summer, mainly including cigarette butts, sticks, plastic bags, fruit shells and peels, etc. The increase of load caused by human pollution is an important reason. "Dalian GEF SGP Seabed Waste Survey and Coastal Cleaning Public Welfare Activity" is supported by the small grant project of the Global Environment Facility of the United Nations Development Programme, and is also the first marine environmental protection project supported by the project in China.

Up to now, the Municipal Environmental Volunteer Association has set up more than 50 clearing points along the coastline of 1906 kilometers in urban and rural areas of the city. Tens of thousands of environmental volunteers conducted surveys and beach cleaning activities at Xinghai Bay Beach Bath, Fujiazhuang Park, Black Rock Reef Park, Jinshitan Beach Bath and more than 30 beaches in districts, cities and counties. In Dalian alone, 24 clean-up activities were held, involving 5,200 participants, 15,900 hours of dedication and 6.4 tons of garbage removal.

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International Coastal Cleaning Day

International Coastal Cleaning Day is the third Saturday in September every year, starting in 1985.

Initiated and coordinated by Marine Conservation Organization, a non-profit organization in the United States, it reports, counts and publishes once a year.

The campaign is the largest and most successful volunteer garbage disposal operation in the world. Tens of millions of volunteers have participated in the response in 114 countries, handling more than 1 billion pounds of all kinds of waste. The objective of the campaign is to publicize environmental protection and remind the public to reduce waste emissions to the sea.