“We (also) found one carpet and multiple cinder blocks and other debris,” said Tammy Jo Anderson Taft, spokesperson for the Guam Environmental Protection Agency.
Taft said there were about 25 volunteers from various organizations, such as the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Guam and the Port Authority of Guam, who combed the shoreline of the Hagåtña Channel collecting debris.
“They collected plastic, aluminum cans and trash,” she said, adding they came 45 minutes early and eager to start.
“They worked hard all day. They were the ones who got the tires into the roll-off container and it worked out really great,” Taft said.
The volunteers also cleaned up the second section of the channel, which is a little past the TASI outrigger canoe hut toward the mouth of the channel.
The next day, the group handled the third section which was in the waterway of the channel up toward the buoys at the mouth of the area.
Taft indicated that although GEPA monitors illegal dumping throughout the island, it is difficult to track down those responsible for dumping their trash in the island’s waters — tacked on to the difficulty of dealing with submerged debris.
The project was organized after someone mentioned to GEPA during the International Coastal Cleanup in September about the tires and other debris. From there, GEPA got all their partners together on the event.
“With so many people involved, we had to make sure we had all the right people informed,” she said. “Illegal dumping is an issue for all areas of Guam, and this shows items that are disposed of in the wrong way, even though we don’t know who put [them] there, we need to remove them because of the damage it may cause.”
