Wildlife and Human Resources Organisation (WHRO Ghana), last Saturday embarked on a clean-up exercise at Abia Community in Ningo Prampram to commemorate World Ocean Day 2025.
Partners at the clean-up exercise which drew scores of people to the community include SEE Turtles, WHRO Young Scientists Programme, Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), Coastal Association of Neighbours, and Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana.
Others are Coastal Areas Management in North and West Africa (MarCNoWA) project under the GMES and Africa Programme Phase II, ESL Consulting, and Ecozoil Limited.
World Ocean Day is an annual event commemorated on June 8 globally, aimed to provide opportunities for individuals and communities to unite in efforts to protect and preserve oceans for future generations.
The clean-up exercise, which started at about 7:00 am, brought together members from the community, researchers, government officials, diaspora representatives, students and health workers.
Executive Director of Wildlife and Human Resources Organisation, Dr. Andrews Agyekumhene, in an interview with journalists, said it was imperative for people to protect the sea considering its benefits not only to humans but animal species, while urging Ghanaians, particularly, those who reside along the beaches to ensure clean coastal environment.
According to the organisers, 2,550.2kg of waste including 60.9kg non-recyclable, 34.8kg of recyclable plastic, 24,58.5kg of other waste consisting of textile waste, tree branches among other debris were collected, while the recyclable plastics sorted was transported to Tema for recycling.
Residents at Abia Community also expressed gratitude to the organisers for the exercise, stressing that it reminded them of the need to continuously clean the beach.
A resident remarked, “Much of the waste on the beach are not from this community but arrives via ocean currents from other coastal areas. You can stand right here and see plastics floating in the ocean, waiting to be pushed ashore by the tides.”
Patrick Abbeyquaye, a member of the Wildlife and Human Resources Organisation, in an interview, said though the organisation will continue to embark on such exercises, the coastal communities must put in place measures to ensure clean beaches.
