As part of the #AdoptaDiveSite initiative on Saturday 10th November 2018 Superior Dive Sosua & a small team of like minded & incredibly awesome local divers set out for another successful clean up dive at The Puntilla Wall in Sosua Bay / Dominican Republic. Our small team of Dominican’s & expats got together & managed to remove an incredible 17lbs of trash from the ocean. Everything from bottle tops, plastics, cigarette buts, fishing line & a variety of other marine debris was removed during a 55 minute dive.
Superior Dive Sosua is working hand in hand with PADI & Project AWARE to help collect valuable marine debris collection information which in turn will be used to help protect our world’s oceans for future generations to come. Project AWARE takes action to create both local & global change for the ocean & the communities that depend on it. Superior Dive Sosua hopes to raise awareness in the Dominican Republic for the need to cut down on single use plastics, Styrofoam use & the necessity to dispose of your trash in a responsible manner.
The Dominican Republic is a beautiful Caribbean Island & there are so many people here that want to keep it that way. Policy change & education need to be the driving force behind trying to protect this natural beauty. As a wise lady once told me education begins at home so let’s start by looking at ourselves & the way we lead our own lives. Let us show our children & our neighbors whether that is at home or at work that by making small changes to our own daily routines we can have a big impact on our planet.
We normally buy our lunch from one of the local restaurants on Sosua Beach so instead of getting it served in a single use Styrofoam box we take our own re-usable Tupperware container. I personally love my daily batida (fresh fruit milkshake) but I got sick of looking at those single use cups in our garbage can, so now I take my own glass & when our diver’s want a batida too we also take a glass for them. These drink containers not only consists of the cup itself but a plastic lid & a plastic straw it’s not rocket science to figure out that single use beverage containers like this are destroying our environment.
Change can sometimes be difficult & it’s easy to get frustrated with government policies or the lack of them but sometimes in my humble opinion it’s better to set an example, to try & be part of the solution rather than just sit there & complain about the problems. I hear it too many times from us gringos & expats, well the government needs to do this, the locals should’t do that, well I challenge those people to look at themselves first. Change your own daily habits let’s be part of the solution not the problem.
For more information about the #AdoptaDiveSite initiative & Project AWARE visit www.projectaware.org & should you have any questions about any upcoming clean up dives that we have planned here at Superior Dive Sosua then don’t hesitate to contact Luke at [email protected] you can also visit www.superiordivesosua.com or follow us on Instagram & Facebook @superiordive