KUALA NERUS: A total of 15 tonnes of rubbish was collected in just four hours during the Terengganu Monsoon Beach Cleanup 2024, held at two beaches.
The programme was organised by the state government in collaboration with NGOs, state agencies and higher learning institutions, including Geng Plastik Ija, PETRONAS, the Kuala Terengganu City Council, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin and Universiti Malaysia Terengganu.
State tourism, culture, environment and climate change committee chairman Datuk Razali Idris said the initiative targeted two popular tourist spots, namely the Seberang Takir beach and Batu Buruk beach, Bernama reported.
“Over 1,000 volunteers worked together to clean a 10km stretch of beach which started at 7.30am.
“During the monsoon season, trash which is brought in by the waves tends to accumulate on beaches. We follow standard operating procedure by segregating wastes such as bottles, glass and wood into specific categories,” he said after the programme at Seberang Takir beach yesterday.
During the programme, a participant discovered a carcass of a green turtle weighing about 60kg washed up on Pantai Seberang Takir near here.
Adnan Ali, 50, an employee of the Kuala Terengganu City Council, said he was collecting rubbish along the beach when he saw the carcass.
He added that he had reported the incident to the Fisheries Department for further action.
Meanwhile, Razali said that although the monsoon season has not ended, tourists are already returning to Terengganu’s islands.
He reminded chalet and resort operators on the islands to adhere to the SOP to prevent untoward incidents.
“The state government has never closed the islands to tourists. However, many operators temporarily halted their operations for maintenance and repairs.
“Since mid-last month, Terengganu’s tourism industry has been gaining momentum. We expect this year’s tourist arrivals to surpass last year’s total of 7.8 million,” he said.
