International Clean Coasts Day: Cleaning up Isla Catalina....again!

This post is also available in: Spanish

For the second time in as many months, the local businesses and organisations of the La Romana – Bayahibe area joined together to clean up the beautiful “Isla Catalina” (Catalina Island), located just south of Casa de Campo and La Romana.

A group of more than 90 volunteers took part in the operation held on “International Clean Coasts Day”, when the team of volunteers focused their cleaning efforts on 2 principal areas:

• “La Pared” or ‘The Wall” – a popular place to snorkel or scuba dive where the sea bed turns into a cliff and literally plummets into an inky darkness (like in the movie Finding Nemo!)

• ‘Capitan Kidd’ – a 1699 shipwreck and cannon repository, which was in desperate need for a clean-up! The last time we went there it was so dirty, we recommended exploring tourists and locals “skip it”

By the end of the day, a LOT of rubbish had been collected:
• 88 bags full of bits of plastic
• 42 bags full of plastic bottles
• 14 bags full of glass bottles
• 1 bag of tins
• 16 bags of foam
• 5 bags of shoes and sandals!
• 17 bags of miscellaneous rubbish!
• 3 car tyres!

Wondering where all this rubbish comes from?
Me too! Although I do not have a definitive answer to this question, I believe the rubbish is washed from inland areas, down the Chavón river and out into the sea and then deposited on nearby Isla Catalina (Catalina Island). Every time it rains heavily I notice ‘debris’ being washed out to see from the Chavón river – so this seems like the most sensible explanation!

To read about and see photos of the first clean up operation on Isla Catalina, click here!

Note to tourists!
Whilst a cleaning operation IS underway at Isla Catalina – there are many area of Isla Catalina which are VERY clean. In fact, the area typically visited by tourists on snorkeling or diving excursions is beautiful and completely rubbish and debris free – so if you are planning a vacation to the Dominican Republic and/or a visit to Catalina Island do not let this put you off! The premise of the clean-up operation is to open up other areas of the island so that they can also be visited by tourists.