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INTERNATIONAL CLEAN-UP DAY 2011 REPORT:

On the 17.09.2011 was the International Clean-Up day. Armed with trash bags and gloves we went out to clean Dahab’s beaches. Beforehand some of us went to the diving-centers here in Dahab to inform them about the sense of such an event and to invite them to join us because a clean beach should be in everyone’s interest who lives here. Because of the positive resonance of the people we thought that some of them will join us. Sadly, nobody except of the RSEC members met. Nevertheless we started the Clean-up with splitting the team in two groups. Nina went with the one group to Mashraba and Abby with the other one to Lighthouse. What we found there was alarming. A grain of sand was followed by a cigarette butt and also plastic bottles, cans and other unpleasant surprises. Luckily some people joined us after they had seen us working. Some tourists watched us when we were cleaning, but they were not too interested in helping……. After 1, 5 hours of collecting trash we ended our work because of the nightfall. At the end we carried a remarkable pile of rubbish. With the help of more people it could have been more.

Text: Volunteers

Photos: Simon Lehner

March, 4th, 2011 - UW- and Beach Clean Up

Today, the RSEC-Team, accompanied by some Sinai Divers Backpackers customers, has completed an underwater clean-up in the area of Masbat Bay (Bannerfish and Mashraba).
The complex ecosystem is suffering from different anthropogenic causes – corals are not the only victims, fleshy algae are covering whole seagrass areas, some indicator fish is not found in Masbat Bay anymore and major animals such as sharks and turtles have become extraordinary rare.
Not only the illegal fishing and old sewage systems are destroying the ecosystem, garbage – thrown away into the sea by locals and by tourists – is damaging the area as well.
The lack of consciousness about their own unique ecosystem is one of the major problems in the local society – old fishing nets, carpets, cigarette butts and all kinds of plastic bags are thrown away into the sea.
The results are quite obvious – the toxins are eaten by fish and remain in the food web, nets are a definite death to most fish that crosses them, and the covering plastic bags cover the light-dependent corals to death.

For the clean-up dive, we divided in buddy pairs and got large-volume bags for collecting, scissors were taken as well to cut nets around corals. The dive was about 50 minutes, while we made our way from Bannerfish Bay to Mashraba, we have collected lots of plastic bottles, cans, cigarette packages and endless butts, even big carpets and pillows were there, but too big to carry them.
In the end, every participant could bring an whole lot of garbage back to the diving center, much more than we would realize on a fun dive, finally it was a good feeling to be able to do something for such a place, that definitely should keep it’s fascination for the future

Today’s afternoon was Friday’s big clean-up in Dahab, a big event that will take place, in different areas of Dahab, every Friday.
Volunteers for the clean-up had to meet at Assalah at 01.30 pm to help clean Dahab of all the garbage covering the streets. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at the meeting place, that there were so many people joining the clean-up, both Egyptians and foreigners.

Then another major question came to every RSEC members’ mind: what about the organization? But it appears that, though we were numerous, this event was quite well organized. People formed groups, and helped by some organizers, dispersed themselves to collect trash as efficiently as possible. People had come with gloves and some of them with plastic bags. But plastic bags were also provided for those who had none. Some people had shovels and rakes, which proved to be very much useful. There was also a loader and several camions to collect plastics bags already full. And even water, and biscuits were distributed to the participants.

Nevertheless, it was hard work with the sun heating hard, the wind blowing and throwing dust in your eyes and there were much to be done. In every corner, Dahab itself seemed to have turned into a dechetery. Somehow, one Egyptian sentence, before the beginning of the event, was not so far from reality « Instead of cleaning Dahab you should clean yourself », though I think it meant more, that we should stop taking Dahab for a bin and stop throwing everything away in the street rather than cleaning Dahab once a while.

As we had finish the clean-up and were going back to the station, I was actually surprised to see that many people were cleaning the streets and sweeping in front of their shops or restaurants… and, though much work would have been needed, the streets did look much better after the clean-up than before. As we can say, unity makes strength, so if everybody do its share of one work, everything is possible.

All in all, though it was hard work, I reckon this clean-up had to be done and I will join Friday next cleaning with pleasure and invite everybody living in Dahab to join as well.

Report - Beach Clean-up, Dahab, 02-09-2010

Due to a lot of additional volunteers, a good organisation and our new RSEC T-shirts, the last clean-up was a huge success. Not only tourists from the street helped us but also the manager from the Ali Baba restaurant who supported us with around 100 rubbish bags and 150 flyers in advance for advertisement. We met in front of Sinai Divers Backpackers at 4.30 p.m.  Full with rubbish bags, gloves, trolleys and a lot of energy we started the clean-up, covering the coastline from Lighthouse up to Eel Garden. We divided into 3 groups in order to cover all the area. After collecting all the rubbish everything was put on the trolleys and brought to the garbage dump next to the bridge. We had at least 10 helpers, locals, tourists and the manager from Felucca helped himself. His comment was: “Action speaks louder than voice!” Only due to their help it was possible to fill 20 rubbish bags in about one hour. A free working journalist documented our clean-up by taking a lot of pictures. This clean-up received much more attention than the last one, a lot of people on the street talked to us about future activities of the RSEC

Report: Hendrik Frey

Pictures: Christian Alter

Under water cleanup 25.08.2010 Bannerfish Bay-Masbat Cove, Dahab, Sinai Egypt

Another day to get started with high temperatures and evaporating bodies wanting nothing more than water. But the coral reef army aka RSEC volunteers didn’t think of such. We heard an emergency coming from the close waters near the shore in front of our office. Immediately we formed 4 buddy teams each one carrying a rice bag and protective plastic gloves in case of finding dangerous items under water. Before entering the beach in front of sunbathing tourists we took a nice group picture and off we went...3, 2, 1 and dive.

As we returned an Italian couple sun-tanning at the beach watched us carrying out 5 huge bags of trash and a carpet. We even had extra air consumption under water due to the weights of the bags. The couple was very curious and wanted to know who we are, what our work is and also gave us lot of loving and strengthening compliments. Shortly after the discussion we met up with a restaurant owner who was surprisingly not using plastic bottled candle light stands for his tables. Was this a coincidence? Because more than 60% of the collected rubbish was set up by these plastic candle stands. What else did we collect? Here just a few items to mention:

-          Fisher nets

-          Fishing lines which we cut away carefully by scissors

-          Metallic colour buckets (trash produced by shoreline constructions)

-          Coke cans (also other brands)

-          Etc.

As we carefully took the rice bags on land we took a bucket full of sea water and sorted out the rubbish inside it in case there was something alive among the rubbish pieces. And there they were: several baby crabs not bigger than 0.5cm crawling among the wasted nets, also two 2cm hermit crabs including two very cute yellowish baby puffer fish. Immediately we took them back to the water and gave them back their freedom. From time to time we were surrounded by other restaurant owners and Egyptian dive instructors who thanked us in the name of all Egyptian for our great effort.

The dive was up to 25m depth but the further we looked towards greater depths under water the more trash we could see accumulating. We think that if there was a cleanup dive up to 40m depth we could most probably collect 20 bags or more (no exaggeration)!  Note and quote: this was just a small area in Dahab Masbat Bay. Imagine how much lies down there along the whole east coast?!  Especially we want to mention the many note pads (paper booklets for taking orders in the restaurants) we found across the sandy area covered by sea grass in front of the Bay.

As we were done for the day the idea came up to write a letter to the ministry of environment signed by all volunteers to make some pressure. We think if the government will not take serious action soon it might be too late taking increasing tourism rates and growing rubbish quantities into account.

text editor: Sahil Puri

As we returned back to our base camp upon the Sinai Divers roof terrace we found that all the teams had found quite a few but partially also quite interesting stuff. The teams collected small trash pieces such as: broken fin straps, fishing hooks, lines, coloured paper, plastic and glass bottles. What we counted towards the rather bigger pieces was a giant fishing net which was cut away with scissors.

The net was attached to a living coral and contained several dead fishes and a detached dead coral fragment. As they carried the net towards our camp a bunch of Bedouin kids came running and claimed it was their net. Obviously we could not give it back to them because they know that this is an illegal fishing technique and they are not allowed by law to practice it.

The second run of our clean up day started at around 8pm. The coral reef army had armed themselves with big plastic bags and one way hygiene gloves. This time, the groups went to different beaches to collect rubbish. As we started our work we had lots of nosy people watching us collecting all the trash while others were passing by not even noticing. Then suddenly we faced three very cute Bedouin girls standing in front of us and asking if they could help. We were astounded and happy at the same time. Immediately we handed them some gloves and continued the work together with them. Because they had such good English skills we could tell them why we are doing this and that we are doing it for free. But still they asked us how much money we would get for it. Here we can make out the struggle for work here in Dahab and one can feel that the Bedouin population is totally dependent on tourism.

As we walked back to the base camp we had local people giving us smiles and saying: "god bless you, thank you for keeping Dahab a clean place."

The overall reaction was just fantastic but there is still lot of work to go in with public awareness. We hope to integrate more people for our next clean up next week, especially tourists!

Text: Sahil Puri

Pictures: Volunteers

International Clean up Day 2009

As every third Saturday in September „The International Clean up Day“ took place on the 19th. Being part of the annually program of Project AWARE there are over and underwater Clean ups all over the world, which are supported by numerous volunteers. Last year over 370.000 people participated cleaning 33.000 miles of shore. They collected 7 million pounds of rubbish.
Project AWARE is a non-profit organisation which conserves underwater environment by education, advocacy and action1. The RSEC Team used this day to organise a Beach Clean up in Dahab. Therefore flyers were designed, distributed to surrounding restaurants and hung up. Also this action was advertised on the internet. To be more effective, other dive centres in Dahab, which also wanted to participate in the International Clean up Day, were asked, where they want to clean the beach.
Two pick-ups for the waste removal have been organised already. As planed the RSEC- Team was ready for take off at 3:30 pm. More and more helpers/volunteers arrived in the station, some of them spontaneously, some because of the flyers.
They got a short introduction in the “waste-topic”.
The presentation included background and sense of the campaign, disadvantage of the impact of waste, degradation of certain constituent parts, etc.
Afterwards all eleven helpers and ten RSEC- Members set out for “Eel Garden”, while talking together about the problem of the waste- impact. Arrived at the place to clean up, half of the group started to clean the area between “Eel Garden” and “Assalah Beach” and the others directly at seaside of Assalah. Within one hour six big bags (100 litres) of mixed rubbish and one full of plastic bottles have been collected, as well as one cardboard box of glass and other sharp things. After this successful action a group picture was taken and the volunteering helpers were invited for the next “Clean up” coming Saturday, 26th of September, 2009.

Text: Helen Springer & Lydia Köhler

Photos: Nina Milton

Clean up report 2009:
The dangers of rubbish in the ocean and RSEC’s response

The problems and dangers caused by rubbish in the ocean is not only a problem in Dahab but worldwide.

A single cigarrette butt can pollute 40 to 60 litres of water (not to mention the 1.2 million hectars of forest in the subtropics which get cut down every year for the production of tobacco). Plastic bottles for example can sometimes be a home for new life, but the negative effects on the whole marine life far outweigh the benefits that the new habitat may provide.

The degradation of plastic is a contentious issue because plastic hasn’t existed long enough to give us an accurate analysis of the time it takes to break down. Although the history of plastic started in the 17th and 18th century with the introduction of caoutchouc, better known as rubber, plastic as we know it today has only been produced for about 60 years. However, it is proven that plastic disintegrates through exogenic processes, like erosion caused by wind and waves, down to the size of a grain of sand, so that it is hardly possible to distinguish between plastic granules and other raw sediments with a naked eye.

Global surface currents sweep up rubbish and deeper ocean currents pull it further in, where it accumulates in so called “trash swirls”. Eventually some of the rubbish either disintegrates or is washed up onto beaches around the world, but the bulk remains in the giant swirls which rotate over years or even centuries. The largest of these, estimated to be twice the size of Texas, is in the Pacific Ocean, 1000 miles west of California. The United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) estimates the amount of plastic at 18000 pieces per square kilometer of ocean. Sand samples have been found to contain plastic granules comprising up to a quater of their entire weight.

The detrimental effect on marine life is not fully known, but it can be safely assumed that there is damage caused by discharged or absorbed Persistent Organic Pollutant (POP) substances like DDT (Dichlordiphenyltrichlorethan) and PCB (Polychlorinated Biphenyls). Endocrine disrupting substances which are enclosed in plastic affect the reproduction and growth of organsims, and animals which ingest these toxins can suffer or even die. Also physical injuries caused by rubbish are very common. (Richard Thompson, University of Plymouth).
For example, seals get stuck in crates, fish and dolphins get caught in lost fishing nets and lines made from nylon, seabirds strangle themselves in the plastic rings which hold together sixpacks of beer, turtles mistake plastic bags for their prey - jellyfish – and eat them, after which they can no longer digest anything and they die. About a third of the squabs of the albatross living on the Midwayislands (northwest Hawaiian Islands) die every year because they get accidently fed with plastic pieces by their parents. At the beach and in the shallow water the tiny plastic particles which look like sand get eaten by crabs, rock worms and fish. The types of animals which perish eating the plastic often get eaten themselves by humans as well as their ocean dwelling predators, and that leads to enrichment of the POPs in the food chain. Seafood ingests and accumulates the harmful substances and so finally the POPs end up on our table.

But how does all the rubbish get in the ocean?

Only a few countries collect and recycle rubbish. Mostly people throw their litter on the street or into the water. A major part reaches the ocean by rivers or gets thrown over board by the crew of ships. Also, freighters can occasionally lose their load. In 1992 the freighter Tokio Express lost 29,000 Lego toys on the way from Hongkong to Washington, and this is only one of many examples. Observations show that even seafront restaurants (whose existence is dependent on tourism) are leaving rubbish on the beach or in the water. Some restaurant guests are throwing plastic bottles into the ocean without a care.

What is RSEC doing?

In 2007 RSEC (Red Sea Environmental Centre) started the “Clean up-Mission” in cooperation with Sinai Divers Backpackers to collect and dispose of the rubbish from the local reefs around Dahab and to clean the beach too. The results of the 60 to 120 minutes beach clean ups done by volunteers this year show that it is very necessary to continue this mission.

To sustain the tourism, in particular the dive tourism and to conserve, protect and for sustainable treatment of the coral reefes for future generations awareness training on place is absolutely essential.
For the international clean up day at the 19th of September there is a big mission plannend around Assalah beach area. It is planned to raise awareness of the pollution of the sea and beaches caused by the tourists and locals. Everybody is called to help with cleaning the beaches of Dahab and set a good example to educate more people to the problem. The RSEC volunteers are trying to get helpers by leaving flyers in the restaurants and hotels which will be found under the glasstables, in the menu or attached to the wall so they won’t have to be fished out of the sea again. Further more there will be advertisement by email, Facebook and the RSEC-Homepage. It is planned that all helpers will wear an armlet with the RSEC Logo.

Clean up Dive und Beach Clean up Dive am 15. August 2009

In the afternoon twelve RSEC members and five voluntary helpers got ready for the next clean up dive:  again the sea bed was to be cleared of a few kilograms rubbish. Many plastic and glass bottles, carpet pieces and other stuff could be ‘retrieved’ this way.  Some things already had some new marine inhabitants – for example a tiny lionfish was hiding in a plastic bottle.  Of course we did not want this creature to be homeless and left the bottle in place. Back at the beach, all rubbish bags were checked again for sea creatures and those were taken back to the sea. After the clean up dive  the whole RSEC team got ready to do another clean up at the beach next to “Lighthouse” in the northern part of the bay.
The aim was to remove the rubbish from the beach next to the entrance for the snorkelers, divers and swimmers. Two years ago in this area a bar closed and the beach there was left to its own devices. Huge amounts of rubbish and dog excrement has accumulated there over time.
Among other things, the clean up should help prevent  glass, paper, cigarettes and plastic getting into the sea and damaging the already overburdened ecosystem. Some of the other helpers also declared themselves to support us in this unpleasant task. At the end of the hour long session, the following rubbish had been collected:  24 kg of glass, 4 kilograms of tin cans, half a kilogram of cigarette butts, and 40 kilograms of mixed waste.

Text: Helen Springer & Marlen Fröhlich

Photos: Jennifer Kowal

CLEAN UP DIVE  + BEACH CLEAN UP

08th August 2009 Masbat Bay, Dahab, Egypt

Thirteen assiduous volunteers from the RSEC team and four other helping hands joined the 85 minute dive in the Masbat Bay without causing further damage, because even the underwater world adapts to human waste, which is thrown away carelessly. For example, a small gray moray eel found a new home in a can of beer. Of course, it’s new home wasn’t destroyed, but left on the spot. Many of the bottles, cans, plastic bags and carpets have now become part of the reef (i.e. they are overgrown or inhabited) so that they cannot be removed without causing further damage.

First of all, the volunteers were trained to not expose the inhabitants of the Masbat Bay to homelessness. This training comprised a presentation by RSEC immediately prior to the dive.
An expert eye was necessary to decide which rubbish was picked up.
To play it safe, huge empty rice bags were affixed underwater for collecting rubbish, and then taken back to the shore. Several teams worked at sorting the rubbish on shore and checking for life in it. Every can or bottle was scrutinised for any inhabitants. In case of emergency an underwater squad was on standby, to return any creatures to the sea if necessary. Sadly and despite great care the volunteers recorded one loss. One tiny little 2-3 cm triggerfish was found dead in a collecting bag and remained undiscovered. The volunteers were visibly concerned.

Not just the general rubbish attracted interest. A small group of helpers armed with pairs of scissors cut corals free from fishing nets, which otherwise result in the death of the whole colony.
Many hands were needed to get off the heavy rubbish bags from the beach.
Work wasn’t done yet. At 6 pm the cleaning of the beach in the southern part of the bay  began.
The volunteers, equipped with new RSEC-T-Shirts, attracted the interest of the curious bedouin kids, who joined the collecting squad.
Even one local sharktooth-trader helped collecting the 2,5 kilo of cigarette butts!
He was very interested in the project and in tourism generally, and had recently started Russian Studies to change his old business to a new tourist branch to avoid trading with endangered sharks and to earn more money.
It was a successful day and all volunteers were proud of contributing for the environment. There was much local interest and the volunteers are hoping to recruit more people for joining the Clean-Up-Day next time.

Text: Jennifer Kowal

Photos: Jennifer Kowal

Clean Up Abu Helal 21.08.2007

by Volunteer Julia Schnetzer

When Alexander Keck, Christian Alter and their volunteers arrived at the first dive site for the Dahab Reef Monitoring they looked on a disaster.
Everywhere were bottles, plastic bags, batteries, shoes and glass.
So they decided to clean up every diving site they will visit during the Reef Monitoring.
Unfortunately waste is one of the major problems we are facing here on Sinai’s coast. Sadly, there are not many people who do care about the environment, some natives but also tourists throw their garbage on the streets or even in the sea without thinking about the consequences.
The waste destroys not only the amazing scenery, even worse is the damage under water.
Turtles can’t distinguish between a plastic bag and a jellyfish. So, the plastic is sometimes consumed which can suffocate the turtles. When the waste falls down on corals the colonies are dying and so the reef gets more and more damaged.