THE Cebu City Coastal Management Task Force (CMTF) collected 13,615 metric tons of garbage during a cleanup drive on Saturday, March 20, 2021.
Reymar Hijara, CMTF subcommittee chairman, said 70 percent of the garbage were composed of plastic products.
Most of the garbage were collected from Mahiga Creek and near the South Road Properties Tower.
He said most of the heavy equipment were deployed in these areas.
They also cleaned the waterways near the Tisa Elementary School and Pahina Central, he said.
They also conducted cleanup activities near Innodata; portion of Kamputhaw River at the Tinago-Tejero Bridge; portion of Kamputhaw River near T. Padilla Market; Ermita coast; Guadalupe River mouth; Pasil coast; Sawang Calero; portion of Guadalupe River near Pahina San Nicolas Barangay Hall; another portion of Guadalupe River near University of San Carlos (USC)-South in Sambag 1; portion of Kamputhaw River at Sudlon Bridge; Arabal River at Kinalumsan Bridge in Mambaling; Alaska, Mambaling; Mananga River at Bulacao upriver portion; Jansen Church in Basak San Nicolas; Hiway 77; Corner F. Jaca St. and White Rd.; Il Corso coast; and Campanario Shoal.
Hijara said around 2,700 volunteers from various government agencies and the private sector participated in the activity.
Hijara said the CMTF will conduct another cleanup in June.
Vice Mayor Michael Rama, in a previous press conference, said activities such as river and coastal cleanups would be held every quarter.
The ordinance entitled “An Ordinance Institutionalizing the Cleanups of Rivers, Natural Waterways and Coastal Areas within the Jurisdiction of the City of Cebu,” which Rama authored, was approved by the council on Dec. 2, 2020.
In previous cleanups, the City Government, through the CMTF, collected 41.6 tons of garbage in December, while in September, it collected 163.15 tons of garbage. (JJL)