Marianas Variety, Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Beautify CNMI continues to build pride, make the island a better place
By Cherrie Anne E. Villahermosa
Variety News Staff
SINCE the establishment of Beautify CNMI in June, the group has been cleaning beaches and planting trees along Beach Road, Laolao Bay and the Grotto area.
The group has planted 1,547 flame trees, coconut trees and daok trees in various places around the island.
Angelo Villagomez, public involvement coordinator of the Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council, said the trees they have planted will one day provide a beautiful canopy for people driving and riding bikes or running along the roads of the Grotto area and Beach Road.
Villagomez said members of MOVER, volunteers from the forestry division, the Division of Environmental Quality, the Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council, the Mariana Islands Nature Alliance, the offices of Reps. Cinta Kaipat, Waki Absalom, students and other private individuals have been active in Beautify CNMI’s cleaning and tree planting activities.
On Aug. 13, the group planted 65 daok trees along the road leading to the Grotto.
On Aug. 19, the group conducted its monthly beach cleanup at Wing Beach. Students from Saipan Southern High School helped pick up over 300 pounds of trash from the beach.
The group also conducted a stream cleanup at Laolao Bay.
Villagomez said some people are using the Laolao watershed as an illegal dumping site.
When it rains heavily, garbage is washed out into the reef flat which pollutes the water and can kill wildlife, Villagomez said.
He said they hauled out 1,820 pounds of trash including three washing machines, an old sofa and a mattress from Laolao Bay on Aug. 20.
On Sunday, Aug. 27, the group was joined by volunteers from the Board of Parole, the Church of Latter Day Saints and Koblerville Elementary School in cleaning up the area around the Koblerville substation.
Villagomez said volunteers used machetes and sickles to cut down the brush choking the plumeria trees, and they cut the grass along the road using bush cutters.
The group also painted over the graffiti at the Koblerville substation.
The paint supplies were donated by Rep. Kaipat, Covenant-Saipan, and the Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council.
The yard waste was picked up by staffers from the offices of Kaipat and Waki, Covenant-Saipan.
Beautify CNMI also collected thousands of pounds of recyclable bottles and cans during the Micronesian Games, the Liberation Day festivities and the Garapan Street Market.
Beautify CNMI is a coalition of government agencies, the private sector, non-profit organizations, private citizens, and visitors.
Its mission is to foster community pride through a comprehensive beautification campaign aimed at enhancing the beauty of the island environment and the quality life through public education on recycling, restoration, waste management, and enforcement of laws.
Villagomez said Beautify CNMI is always looking for volunteers to help with their island improvement efforts.
This weekend, Beautify CNMI will be working at Laolao Bay and will be joined by volunteers from DEQ.
The group will plant native trees on the Laolao hillsides.
The meeting place will be the Santa Soledad Church at 8 a.m.
For more information call DEQ at 664-8500 or Angelo Villagomez at 483-1078.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
In the news again
Saipan Tribune, Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Governor supports ocean observatory for NMI
The Executive Branch has expressed its support for the construction of an ocean observatory in the CNMI.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial said that the NSF-MARGINS Steering Committee has the CNMI's full support for the proposed ORION Global Ocean Observatory Project located on the Big Blue Seamount in the Marianas.
"We support this project for multiple reasons. ORION's observation results have anticipated geophysical, chemical, and biological significance for both the worldwide scientific community and for the people of our islands," he said.
Fitial further said that the proximity of the proposed observatory location would mean that any results generated would have immediate impact for the residents of the CNMI, including advance warning for "tsunamigenic" events.
"I am pledging the full assistance of the CNMI government agencies in facilitating this project, should you choose to place the observatory in the Marianas," Fitial said, adding that as a Commonwealth of the United States, the CNMI could offer a stable political, economic, and legal platform for this project.
He said this opportunity would expand the CNMI's existing relations with Japan through this endeavor to further include the scientific community. "We would consider it an honor to have this prestigious international scientific project undertaken in the Marianas and will work diligently with the MARGINS Steering Committee and regional partners to ensure its success."
A letter sent last week to MARGINS, an organization concerned with plate tectonics, geology, and volcanoes, which sought for public comments on the proposal to build a Global Ocean Observatory in one of two places-Costa Rica or the Marianas.
Resource Conservation and Development Council's Angelo Villagomez earlier said if the CNMI could convince this organization to build their observatory in the Marianas, it would help the local economy as well as build the international prestige of the islands.
"We really want this project to come here, so could you please take the time to add a comment to the MARGINS online Discussion Board," he said. Villagomez had sought the community's assistance to tell MARGIN why this project would be better in the Marianas versus Costa Rica.
Villagomez added that the CNMI community should further inform the group that they could depend on local support among many others. "If you have the scientific background to add to the discussion on why the Marianas are a better choice scientifically, please do so."
The website is at http://www.margins.wustl.edu/OrionComments.html. Click on the link in the third paragraph and use the username "orionforum" and password "observatory."
That will pull up a new web browser. The online discussion forum is about halfway down. At the bottom of the page are some articles discussing the pros and cons of doing this project in the Marianas or in Costa Rica. "The articles will be helpful for those who are scientifically inclined, but for the rest of us, myself included, a show of local support should suffice," Villagomez added.
For further inquiry, contact Ken Kramer at RC&D 236-0893.
Governor supports ocean observatory for NMI
The Executive Branch has expressed its support for the construction of an ocean observatory in the CNMI.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial said that the NSF-MARGINS Steering Committee has the CNMI's full support for the proposed ORION Global Ocean Observatory Project located on the Big Blue Seamount in the Marianas.
"We support this project for multiple reasons. ORION's observation results have anticipated geophysical, chemical, and biological significance for both the worldwide scientific community and for the people of our islands," he said.
Fitial further said that the proximity of the proposed observatory location would mean that any results generated would have immediate impact for the residents of the CNMI, including advance warning for "tsunamigenic" events.
"I am pledging the full assistance of the CNMI government agencies in facilitating this project, should you choose to place the observatory in the Marianas," Fitial said, adding that as a Commonwealth of the United States, the CNMI could offer a stable political, economic, and legal platform for this project.
He said this opportunity would expand the CNMI's existing relations with Japan through this endeavor to further include the scientific community. "We would consider it an honor to have this prestigious international scientific project undertaken in the Marianas and will work diligently with the MARGINS Steering Committee and regional partners to ensure its success."
A letter sent last week to MARGINS, an organization concerned with plate tectonics, geology, and volcanoes, which sought for public comments on the proposal to build a Global Ocean Observatory in one of two places-Costa Rica or the Marianas.
Resource Conservation and Development Council's Angelo Villagomez earlier said if the CNMI could convince this organization to build their observatory in the Marianas, it would help the local economy as well as build the international prestige of the islands.
"We really want this project to come here, so could you please take the time to add a comment to the MARGINS online Discussion Board," he said. Villagomez had sought the community's assistance to tell MARGIN why this project would be better in the Marianas versus Costa Rica.
Villagomez added that the CNMI community should further inform the group that they could depend on local support among many others. "If you have the scientific background to add to the discussion on why the Marianas are a better choice scientifically, please do so."
The website is at http://www.margins.wustl.edu/OrionComments.html. Click on the link in the third paragraph and use the username "orionforum" and password "observatory."
That will pull up a new web browser. The online discussion forum is about halfway down. At the bottom of the page are some articles discussing the pros and cons of doing this project in the Marianas or in Costa Rica. "The articles will be helpful for those who are scientifically inclined, but for the rest of us, myself included, a show of local support should suffice," Villagomez added.
For further inquiry, contact Ken Kramer at RC&D 236-0893.
Psst....he's talking about us!
Saipan Tribune, Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Kudos to those who keep our islands clean
Si Yu'us ma'ase'-Olomwaay indeed to those volunteers who continue to show their sincere care for the welfare of our islands' serene and pristine eco-beauty through many different ways.
This startling revelation is unfortunately not new to us, especially illegal trashing on public lands. The continued occurance of illegal dumping in our islands underscores the unequivocal fundamental problem that we all face and which need immediate solution:
1. Blatant and utter lack of enforcement to punitively punish those who have no regard for our people's health and our islands tourism wealth (people are naturally prone to behaving within the constraints of the law ONLY IF and ONLY IF we get fined, arrested, publicized on TV/newspaper/radio, and be subjected to "public disgrace" that is punitive and strong enough to wake the hell out of the rest of us so that we would not end up being disgraced ourselves, esp. in our small tight knit island community);
2. Lack of convenience centers and/or municipal collection services aimed at capturing the bulk of residential solid waste at the household level in each of our villages, principally those that are frankly "too far" (and too costly in terms of time and gas) from the Lower Base Refuse Transfer Station or the Marpi Landfill.
I remain optimistic that someday, somewhere, someday in my lifetime someone will soon heed the call to (1) ENFORCE and ASSESS PUNITIVE fines and publicly disgrace those "litter-ers" ONCE AND FOR ALL; and (2) consider constructing either convenience centers OR institute municipal solid waste collection services for the sake of our people's health and our tourism's wealth.
Meantime, we need only be and remain individually compassionate and collectively forceful as a small group one day at a time and hopefully someday, somewhere, someday in our lifetime someone hears and does something to spare our children soon.
John O. Gonzales
Via E-mail
Kudos to those who keep our islands clean
Si Yu'us ma'ase'-Olomwaay indeed to those volunteers who continue to show their sincere care for the welfare of our islands' serene and pristine eco-beauty through many different ways.
This startling revelation is unfortunately not new to us, especially illegal trashing on public lands. The continued occurance of illegal dumping in our islands underscores the unequivocal fundamental problem that we all face and which need immediate solution:
1. Blatant and utter lack of enforcement to punitively punish those who have no regard for our people's health and our islands tourism wealth (people are naturally prone to behaving within the constraints of the law ONLY IF and ONLY IF we get fined, arrested, publicized on TV/newspaper/radio, and be subjected to "public disgrace" that is punitive and strong enough to wake the hell out of the rest of us so that we would not end up being disgraced ourselves, esp. in our small tight knit island community);
2. Lack of convenience centers and/or municipal collection services aimed at capturing the bulk of residential solid waste at the household level in each of our villages, principally those that are frankly "too far" (and too costly in terms of time and gas) from the Lower Base Refuse Transfer Station or the Marpi Landfill.
I remain optimistic that someday, somewhere, someday in my lifetime someone will soon heed the call to (1) ENFORCE and ASSESS PUNITIVE fines and publicly disgrace those "litter-ers" ONCE AND FOR ALL; and (2) consider constructing either convenience centers OR institute municipal solid waste collection services for the sake of our people's health and our tourism's wealth.
Meantime, we need only be and remain individually compassionate and collectively forceful as a small group one day at a time and hopefully someday, somewhere, someday in our lifetime someone hears and does something to spare our children soon.
John O. Gonzales
Via E-mail
Letter to the Editor by DEQ
Saipan Tribune, Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Laulau Bay cleanup a success
Just wanted to share the phenomenal news that I received from Public Involvement Coordinator Angelo Villagomez yesterday morning-two Sundays ago (Aug, 20), approximately 30 restoration volunteers hauled out a whopping 1,820 lbs of illegally dumped garbage from the streams of Laulau Bay. This included two washing machines, a couch, a mattress, and other assorted trash items. It's more than a little shocking, the kind of stuff that people deliberately dump in some of the most beautiful and remote spots on our island-but what a great demonstration of community involvement and care from our volunteers who responded to the call for help that day.
Special thanks goes to Cinta Kaipat and her staff, MOVER president Marites Castillo, and the MOVER volunteers, Angelo Villagomez, and Marianas RC&D, and all our terrific volunteers who pitched in to clean up Laulau!
Tina Sablan
CNMI Division of Environmental Quality
Laulau Bay cleanup a success
Just wanted to share the phenomenal news that I received from Public Involvement Coordinator Angelo Villagomez yesterday morning-two Sundays ago (Aug, 20), approximately 30 restoration volunteers hauled out a whopping 1,820 lbs of illegally dumped garbage from the streams of Laulau Bay. This included two washing machines, a couch, a mattress, and other assorted trash items. It's more than a little shocking, the kind of stuff that people deliberately dump in some of the most beautiful and remote spots on our island-but what a great demonstration of community involvement and care from our volunteers who responded to the call for help that day.
Special thanks goes to Cinta Kaipat and her staff, MOVER president Marites Castillo, and the MOVER volunteers, Angelo Villagomez, and Marianas RC&D, and all our terrific volunteers who pitched in to clean up Laulau!
Tina Sablan
CNMI Division of Environmental Quality
Monday, August 28, 2006
Community Project
Over our barbeque potluck lunch yesterday, some of us got to talking. Wouldn't it be nice to turn the old abandoned airfield into a neighborhood park? There is already a community center and a basketball park, all we'd have to do is to fill in the spaces with park benches, a playground, and lots of trees and picnic tables.
Well, should we decide to work with our Beautify CNMI partners and turn it into a park, we've already got a pretty good headstart. On Sunday, 76, yes 76, volunteers spent 9, yes 9, hours cleaning up the Koblerville substation and old airstrip.
This continues the project that we started last week, where we cut back brush and grass. This week we finished clearing the area along the road. We also washed off and painted over all of the graffiti on the substation.
Paint and paint supplies were donated by Rep. Cinta Kaipat and Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council.
The kids did a fantastic job of washing off the old paint. This ensured that we had a nice clean surface for us to paint over.
While the kids picked up litter around the site and painted the first coat of paint over the graffiti, the adults were hard at work using bushcutters and machetes to cut back the brush:
I wish this picture was in better focus. You can see from the photo that the number of boys far outweighed the number of girls. The kids weren't motivated on their own to pick up trash because they all wanted to paint and/or use the chainsaw. So how do you get 20-30 kids pumped up to pick up garbage? Easy, just make it a contest! I challenged the boys to pick up more trash than the girls and vice versa. In this picture we are deciding who the champions are...then I discovered that instead of picking up litter, the boys were stuffing their bags with yard waste. Cheaters!
So 15 seconds later I said the contest was still on and I challenged the boys to actually beat the girls, even though there were far fewer girls than boys. The kids immeadiately charged off to pick up more trash. Can you guess who won? The girls, of course!
The previous two pictures are of our chefs. They prepared the food that we feasted on.
After luch it was time to get back to work. We finished painting the substation, effectively removing ALL of the graffiti. We also finished up cutting the grass and clearing the brush, then we spent a considerable time picking up the yard waste afterwards.
What a difference a day makes! At the end of the day we were all a little sunburned and really tired. Rep. Cinta Kaipat bought ice keiki for the kids to thank them for a hard days work.
This weekend's activites were planned and supoorted by Rep. Kaipat's Office and the Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council. Most of the volunteer labor was provided by MOVER and students from Koblerville Elementary.
While this project does not directly protect coral reefs, it engenders community pride and environmental awareness in the residents of Koblerville. When we asked the kids why this project was important, many of them answered that this was "our island" and we "have to take care of it."
Correct answer, kids.
I'll see you at next week's beach and stream cleanup and planting.
Well, should we decide to work with our Beautify CNMI partners and turn it into a park, we've already got a pretty good headstart. On Sunday, 76, yes 76, volunteers spent 9, yes 9, hours cleaning up the Koblerville substation and old airstrip.
This continues the project that we started last week, where we cut back brush and grass. This week we finished clearing the area along the road. We also washed off and painted over all of the graffiti on the substation.
Paint and paint supplies were donated by Rep. Cinta Kaipat and Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council.
The kids did a fantastic job of washing off the old paint. This ensured that we had a nice clean surface for us to paint over.
While the kids picked up litter around the site and painted the first coat of paint over the graffiti, the adults were hard at work using bushcutters and machetes to cut back the brush:
I wish this picture was in better focus. You can see from the photo that the number of boys far outweighed the number of girls. The kids weren't motivated on their own to pick up trash because they all wanted to paint and/or use the chainsaw. So how do you get 20-30 kids pumped up to pick up garbage? Easy, just make it a contest! I challenged the boys to pick up more trash than the girls and vice versa. In this picture we are deciding who the champions are...then I discovered that instead of picking up litter, the boys were stuffing their bags with yard waste. Cheaters!
So 15 seconds later I said the contest was still on and I challenged the boys to actually beat the girls, even though there were far fewer girls than boys. The kids immeadiately charged off to pick up more trash. Can you guess who won? The girls, of course!
The previous two pictures are of our chefs. They prepared the food that we feasted on.
After luch it was time to get back to work. We finished painting the substation, effectively removing ALL of the graffiti. We also finished up cutting the grass and clearing the brush, then we spent a considerable time picking up the yard waste afterwards.
What a difference a day makes! At the end of the day we were all a little sunburned and really tired. Rep. Cinta Kaipat bought ice keiki for the kids to thank them for a hard days work.This weekend's activites were planned and supoorted by Rep. Kaipat's Office and the Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council. Most of the volunteer labor was provided by MOVER and students from Koblerville Elementary.
While this project does not directly protect coral reefs, it engenders community pride and environmental awareness in the residents of Koblerville. When we asked the kids why this project was important, many of them answered that this was "our island" and we "have to take care of it."
Correct answer, kids.
I'll see you at next week's beach and stream cleanup and planting.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Marianas RC&D in the News
Saipan Tribune, Thursday, August 24, 2006
Support ocean observatory for NMI
MARGINS, an organization concerned with plate tectonics, geology, and volcanoes, is asking for public comments on the proposal to build a Global Ocean Observatory in one of two places: Costa Rica or the Marianas.
If the CNMI can convince this organization to build their observatory in the Marianas, it would help the local economy as well as build the international prestige of the islands.
"We really want this project to come here, so could you please take the time to add a comment to the MARGINS online Discussion Board," said Angelo Villagomez of the Resource Conservation and Development Council. "Please tell them why this project would be better in the Marianas versus Costa Rica. Please tell them that they can depend on local support, etc. If you have the scientific background to add to the discussion on why the Marianas are a better choice scientifically, please do so."
The website is at http://www.margins.wustl.edu/OrionComments.html
Click on the link in the third paragraph and use the username "orionforum" and password "observatory." That will pull up a new web browser. The online discussion forum is about halfway down. At the bottom of the page are some articles discussing the pros and cons of doing this project in the Marianas or in Costa Rica.
"The articles will be helpful for those who are scientifically inclined, but for the rest of us (myself included), a show of local support should suffice," Villagomez added.
If you have any questions, contact Ken Kramer at RC&D 236-0893.
Support ocean observatory for NMI
MARGINS, an organization concerned with plate tectonics, geology, and volcanoes, is asking for public comments on the proposal to build a Global Ocean Observatory in one of two places: Costa Rica or the Marianas.
If the CNMI can convince this organization to build their observatory in the Marianas, it would help the local economy as well as build the international prestige of the islands.
"We really want this project to come here, so could you please take the time to add a comment to the MARGINS online Discussion Board," said Angelo Villagomez of the Resource Conservation and Development Council. "Please tell them why this project would be better in the Marianas versus Costa Rica. Please tell them that they can depend on local support, etc. If you have the scientific background to add to the discussion on why the Marianas are a better choice scientifically, please do so."
The website is at http://www.margins.wustl.edu/OrionComments.html
Click on the link in the third paragraph and use the username "orionforum" and password "observatory." That will pull up a new web browser. The online discussion forum is about halfway down. At the bottom of the page are some articles discussing the pros and cons of doing this project in the Marianas or in Costa Rica.
"The articles will be helpful for those who are scientifically inclined, but for the rest of us (myself included), a show of local support should suffice," Villagomez added.
If you have any questions, contact Ken Kramer at RC&D 236-0893.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
MIC Island Tour
Today I went on an island tour of Saipan with Micronesians in Island Conservation (MIC). MIC is a peer learning network of conservation leaders from government and non-governmental organizations committed to protecting and sustainably managing resources in their islands. MIC's approach is to strengthen the collaborative, organizational, technical, and policy skills of leaders and organizations so that, together with communities, they can advance the conservation and management of important natural areas in Micronesia.
You can probably tell that I didn't write that. I would describe MIC as a group of Micronesian conservationists who get together regularly to see what they can learn from one another.
The MIC members came from all over Micronesia, Australia, and Mexico. There was even a gentleman visiting from Grenada. He is studying MIC in an attempt to create a similar organization in theCaribbeann.
Before we went on our tour we were treated to a presentation on local Carolinian culture by Lino Olopai. I don't even know where to begin discussing Lino. Back in the 1970's Lino left Saipan for the Central Carolines in a traditional Carolinian canoe. He spent three years learning about the Carolinians there, and ultimately learning about himself and his people back in Saipan. I'll leave it at that. Lino deserves his own post one of these days.
Former Lt. Governor and Supreme Court Justice Jesse Borja (D-Saipan) served as our tour guide today. Jesse is involved because he is a member of MIC and the Mariana Island Nature Alliance (MINA).
Jesse took us to Lake Susupe, which is one of Saipan's largest wetlands, to Obyan Beach, where the local government and MINA have big plans to protect the coral reefs and turtle nesting sites (ultimately improving the diving and fishing), and to Managaha Island, which is one of Saipan's five Marine Protected Areas. Jesse gave us a running commentary over the bus's sound system as we drove from location to location. Thanks, Jesse!
Here are some pictures, starting with Lake Susupe:
Obyan Beach:
Environmentally dependent economic activity:
More environmentally dependent economic activity:
Our view at lunch time:
Managaha Island:
You can probably tell that I didn't write that. I would describe MIC as a group of Micronesian conservationists who get together regularly to see what they can learn from one another.
The MIC members came from all over Micronesia, Australia, and Mexico. There was even a gentleman visiting from Grenada. He is studying MIC in an attempt to create a similar organization in theCaribbeann.
Before we went on our tour we were treated to a presentation on local Carolinian culture by Lino Olopai. I don't even know where to begin discussing Lino. Back in the 1970's Lino left Saipan for the Central Carolines in a traditional Carolinian canoe. He spent three years learning about the Carolinians there, and ultimately learning about himself and his people back in Saipan. I'll leave it at that. Lino deserves his own post one of these days.
Former Lt. Governor and Supreme Court Justice Jesse Borja (D-Saipan) served as our tour guide today. Jesse is involved because he is a member of MIC and the Mariana Island Nature Alliance (MINA).
Jesse took us to Lake Susupe, which is one of Saipan's largest wetlands, to Obyan Beach, where the local government and MINA have big plans to protect the coral reefs and turtle nesting sites (ultimately improving the diving and fishing), and to Managaha Island, which is one of Saipan's five Marine Protected Areas. Jesse gave us a running commentary over the bus's sound system as we drove from location to location. Thanks, Jesse!
Here are some pictures, starting with Lake Susupe:
Obyan Beach:
Environmentally dependent economic activity:
More environmentally dependent economic activity:
Our view at lunch time:
Managaha Island:
What's my name?
Ten points to the person who can correctly identify the small fish in the center of this picture (the one with the pointy nose).
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Stream Cleanup!
Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council participated in two community events this weekend. On Saturday we helped Beautify CNMI clean up the substation in Koblerville. This project doesn't correlate directly with our Coral Reef Outreach Project, but RC&D's involvement shows that we care about the community and that we are willing to help out on community based efforts, not just our coral reef efforts.
On Sunday we planned to plant trees up at the Lao Lao revegetation project, but the volunteers requested that we have a stream cleanup instead. Who am I to argue with the volunteers? We rescheduled the planting, which should be the final planting of the year, for two weeks from Sunday and drove down to the beach for a stream cleanup.
A few months ago we took some students to Lao Lao on a field trip. We toured the revegetation area and then pulled out 440 lbs of trash from Stream #4. Today we finished cleaning up the trash in Stream #4 that we weren't able to get in June, cleaned up along the beach, and then cleaned up another illegal dumping site just north of Stream #4.
We put everything in garbage bags and piled it up on the side of the road. Tomorrow we are going to drive back down there to transport the garbage to the Saipan transfer station. I'll report back on the total weight of all the trash after we weigh it.
Our photographer went a little crazy with the pictures this morning. When I plugged in my camera to upload the pictures, I saw that she had taken 97 photographs!
Here are a few of my favorites:
What really strikes me with all of these pictures is how beautiful and green this island is. It is truly a shame that people would use such a beautiful place to dump their garbage. We shouldn't be dumping garbage in places like this, we should be taking tourists down there...or at least enjoying it ourselves.
Luckily, we have people like our volunteers who are willing to give up a large part of their day, or even their entire weekend as is the case with MOVER, to make this island a better place to live.
On Sunday we planned to plant trees up at the Lao Lao revegetation project, but the volunteers requested that we have a stream cleanup instead. Who am I to argue with the volunteers? We rescheduled the planting, which should be the final planting of the year, for two weeks from Sunday and drove down to the beach for a stream cleanup.
A few months ago we took some students to Lao Lao on a field trip. We toured the revegetation area and then pulled out 440 lbs of trash from Stream #4. Today we finished cleaning up the trash in Stream #4 that we weren't able to get in June, cleaned up along the beach, and then cleaned up another illegal dumping site just north of Stream #4.
We put everything in garbage bags and piled it up on the side of the road. Tomorrow we are going to drive back down there to transport the garbage to the Saipan transfer station. I'll report back on the total weight of all the trash after we weigh it.
Our photographer went a little crazy with the pictures this morning. When I plugged in my camera to upload the pictures, I saw that she had taken 97 photographs!
Here are a few of my favorites:
What really strikes me with all of these pictures is how beautiful and green this island is. It is truly a shame that people would use such a beautiful place to dump their garbage. We shouldn't be dumping garbage in places like this, we should be taking tourists down there...or at least enjoying it ourselves.Luckily, we have people like our volunteers who are willing to give up a large part of their day, or even their entire weekend as is the case with MOVER, to make this island a better place to live.
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