As part of the INA Group project, the 10th ecological clean-up of the Korčula waters, beaches and islets took on a humanitarian character, with over 100 participants joining the call and filling 300 garbage bags in one morning.
High temperatures and sunny weather reigned last Saturday when the clean-up began on town beaches, sea bottom and islets close to Korčula town. The already familiar activity was initiated 10 years ago by Antun Prizmić, the legendary president of the St. Anthony town area, while this year it gained a humanitarian character, under the patronage of INA Group and Korčula town, as Dora Mikelić reported for Dubrovački Vjesnik on May 29, 2018.
“The Eco Diving Club Korčula has been cleaning islets, beaches and sea bottom for many years, but 10 years ago Ante Prizmić brought us all together and organized a joint activity. Since then we have continually cleaned ahead of the tourism season. This year we are very satisfied with a significant number of participants, better organization, larger number of cleaned islets, and as a result larger number of garbage bags,” explained Frano Fabris, one of the organizers and president of the Eco Diving Club Korčula.
And the number of bags from Korčula islets and beaches was carefully counted this year. The patron of this year’s clean-up alongside Korčula town, was also INA Group as part of their corporative volunteering project aiming to support local communities. Employees of the INA sales point Korčula chose the Eco Diving Club to run the project and INA donated 20 kuna for each collected bag for a humanitarian cause. 250 bags were filled on land and another 50 from the sea, and the agreement on whom to give the money to was unanimous: 6 thousand kuna will go to the well-known Korčula boy Baldo Jurišić, in order to extend his treatment with the Lokomat, a robot aiding in rehabilitation of lower extremities in a Dubrovnik polyclinic.
The clean-up began in the morning hours, with 20 divers from ERK Korčula who clean the sea bottom and their guests from the Sports Eco Club Viper from Grude, members of the Red Cross Society Korčula, students of the Kinesiology Faculty from Zagreb who were attending field school in Korčula, pupils of the Primary School Petar Kanavelić and their teacher Alan Farc, Old Town and St. Anthony town areas, members of the indoor football club St. Anthony, employees and volunteers of the INA sales point, employees of the Hober municipal company, Dupin Dive Center, numerous taxi drivers who carried people and garbage bags as well as locals. They clean beaches on Badija, Planjak, Sutvara, Baretica, Rogačić, Banje town beach, beach next to INA sales point (Punta Križa) and the sea bottom in front of Banje and INA.
As Fabris cited, those who could not aid in the clean-up loaned their boats which also contributed to this year’s tally of 300 garbage bags.
“Since the activity is humanitarian this year, it attracted a larger number of people, but I believe that locals also support the point of this activity. It is important our sea and beaches are kept clean and ready for the tourism season. My many years of experience tell me the situation with waster above and below sea is slightly better, this year we only found one tire, one plastic chair, nothing especially concerning. This is why we will strive for this activity to become an unavoidable event in the preseason,” stated Frano Fabris.
Except for the traditional clean-up, all participants also took part in the traditional marenda meal, in the same place for the past 10 years – Badija.
Translated from Dubrovački Vjesnik, for the original click here.
