IN honor of the CNMI Environmental Awareness Month, the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality and the Micronesia Islands Nature Alliance, together with community partners, held a roadside waving on Friday in Garapan to raise awareness.
This year’s theme is “A Clean Environment for a Healthy Community.”
Division of Environmental Quality Director Jonathan Arriola on Friday said for BECQ and its divisions, DEQ and Coastal Resources Management, every day is Environmental Awareness Month or EAM.
“But April is the one month [when] we get to showcase all of the environmental issues, what challenges and what successes we have within the environment,” he said.
Several activities are slated for this month, including a storm drain mural painting contest where contestants are given the opportunity to paint their message that raises awareness about the effects that littering has on the ocean.
Water from all over the island flows down storm drains, taking with it all of the trash and pollution from watersheds. These eventually end up in the ocean where people swim and fish.
The contest is a way to raise awareness of these effects.
Painting will begin on Wednesday, April 14. For more information on this contest, contact Olivia Tenorio at 664-8531 or [email protected]
Winners of the Storm Drain Mural Painting Contest will be announced on Tuesday, June 8, which falls on World Oceans Day.
Other EAM activities, including a Recycling in the Marianas Competition that was held on Wednesday, March 30, were open to all public and private schools on Saipan.
Public and private schools on Saipan also had the opportunity to take an in-person tour of the BECQ water surveillance laboratory this past Friday.
Tours will also take place on Friday, April 16; Thursday, April 29; and Friday, April 30.
Moreover, a two-day virtual Environmental Expo will be held on Tuesday, April 27 and Wednesday, April 28 in which all fifth graders in the CNMI are welcome to attend and learn more about the Commonwealth’s environmental agencies and organizations.
There will be virtual presentations on several environmental topics.
This year’s Earth Day falls on Thursday, April 22. BECQ will be closed for the restoration of the rain garden at Tanapag Elementary School.
The CNMI Environmental Awareness Month celebration will be capped by an island-wide cleanup on Saturday, April 24. It is open to all public and private groups on Saipan. The goal is to bring the community together to pick up trash and debris, and beautify the CNMI.
Arriola said the cleanup is the agency’s signature EAM event, adding that it gives the entire community an opportunity to come together to collect trash around the island.
The agency also holds a monthly beach cleanup on the first Saturday of every month, and invites the community to join in its efforts to keep the CNMI safe and clean.
In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, the agency, like the rest of the world, has had to adapt and adjust.
“We have a mandate to ensure that our coastal waters, drinking water, and environment in general [are] safeguarded throughout the pandemic. With the approval of the governor, the CNMI Covid-19 task force, and our administrator, we are able to go back to work and really safeguard the environment,” he said.
On that note, Arriola said, “The environment is everyone’s responsibility. It’s not just BECQ’s responsibility. That’s a responsibility that we all share, so keep it clean and keep it green.”
He thanked the administration, BECQ staff, MINA, private partners, and community members for supporting the cause.
“Strive to do your best to be an environmental steward. The environment is very precious and it takes everyone to really keep it pristine,” he said.
For more information or to report any wrongdoing against the environment, contact BECQ at 664-8500.
Division of Environmental Quality Director Jonathan Arriola poses with a mascot on Friday in Garapan at a roadside waving in honor of Environmental Awareness Month.
The Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality and the Micronesia Islands Nature Alliance combined forces on Friday in Garapan for a roadside waving activity in honor of Environmental Awareness Month.
