British Ambassador Partakes in Komiza Think Green Action

As Morski writes on the 19th of October, 2020, after two days, the ecological action Think Green on the island of Vis in the town of Komiza came to an end. The Komiza Think Green action was in actual fact 20 actions in a row. The main organisers of the ecological action and holders of the Think Green project are the Diving Club Roniti se Mora and National Geographic Croatia, as well as other partners of the Komiza Tourist Board, British Embassy Zagreb, Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency, CIOS, Mares, Jamnica, Garmin, ESET NOD32, Zagrebacke pekarne Klara, Medvedgrad Brewery, Perutnina Ptuj, DVD Komiza, DC Manta, DC B-24, DC Issa, Nautical Centre Komiza, Geopark Vis, Modra Spilja, Morski HR and Scubalife.

The seabed in Komiza and Gusarica beach were cleaned by as many as 50 dedicated divers and several volunteers from along the coast, who were joined by the locals of Komiza. Over 200 bags of various waste, dozens of car tyres and batteries, fenders from boats, a hundred metres of steel cables, old pots and chairs were taken out, which were taken care of by the employees of Komiza’s communal board. Approximately 1.5 tonnes of bulky waste and waste in bags were collected in total.

Diving parachutes, hooks and boats were used to extract large pieces of debris, and the situation with waste at such busy, semi-closed, micro-locations is of course not satisfactory. After such actions, no one expects the seabed to be completely cleaned, but the educational effect is immeasurable.

Several hundred kilograms of removed waste and garbage aren’t negligible, but the real goal of such eco-actions is not only cleaning but also educating citizens, encouraging more responsible behaviour and pointing out the growing danger of pollution. The real goal is to act on awareness and reduce pollution, and only then remediation. The Komiza Think Green action achieved both goals in the right way.

Perhaps the biggest undertaking of this action was the waterfront in Komiza, around which almost most of the waste was removed, while mostly plastic packaging and small items were found on Gusarica beach.

”We’re happy and privileged that we were able to donate part of the equipment to the diving club. The best side of this donation is that this equipment will remain in the club and will be used not only in this action on Vis but also in future actions of cleaning waste from the Adriatic sea and beaches, probably one of the most beautiful coasts in the world,” said British Ambassador to Croatia Andrew Dalgleish.

The United Kingdom is already fully “thinking green” – fighting climate change and cleaning up the environment – and this is an important focus of our action, especially this year, as in exactly one year the UN Conference on Climate Change will be held in our country, in Glasgow. The UK has already committed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions to zero by 2050, we’ve banned the use of micro-plastic particles in cosmetic products, and they usually end up right in the seas and oceans. We protect our natural habitats and ecosystems in collaboration with other countries and communities. And just last week, Prince William launched the Earthshot Award, the most prestigious global award in history, which should inspire us and give even more impetus to efforts to “fix” our planet over the next 10 years, and that decade is crucial for the Earth,” said Dalgleish.

The decisions we make and the actions we take now will have a direct impact on the environment we leave to future generations. We, each of us, are responsible for the actions that will help or hurt our environment,” concluded the British ambassador.