For two days in September, Redang Island was inundated by professional divers, dive enthusiasts, non-divers and media groups from Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, United States and Germany for a three-day event which took place from 14 to 16 September 2007.
Together with Sony Malaysia Sdn. Bhd, Berjaya Redang Beach Resort exercised their roles as socially responsible corporate citizens of Malaysia by taking positive steps to nurture conservation efforts to help maintain a harmonious balance between nature and human activities.
The event programme included environmental talks on 'Marine Turtles and Conservation Efforts in Redang Island' by Professor Chan Eng Heng from University Terengganu Malaysia, recipient of the United Nations Environment Award - Global 500 Laureate in year 2001, who is also well known for her contributions towards grassroots marine turtles conservation projects carried out for over 10 years.
In addition, participants and media were also given an insightful tour at the Turtles Sanctuary Site at Chagar Hutang.
A total of 707 'crown-of-thorns' starfish (Acanthaster planci), 31 fishing nets, 20 non-biodegradeable plastic traps and 3 bags full of domestic waste were collected by participating divers from major dive sites at Mak Simpan, Chagar Hutang, Turtle Bay, Berjaya Redang House Reef and Bahagia Wreck.
Non-diving participants also cleared up the beach area at Chargar Hutang and collected over 75 beverage bottles, 45 food containers, 35 individual fishing lines, 15 shoes, 10 styrofoam crates and 2 buoys. A startling 6 millions tons of litter and garbage enters the world's oceans yearly, and takes years to decompose. The appalling amount of trash collected sends an alarming message that more education is required on the importance of nature conservation among the locals and visitors alike.
Michael Tan, Resident Manager of Berjaya Redang Beach Resort said that as an environmentally aware corporate citizen, Berjaya Redang Beach Resort takes its role in preserving the nature and educating the public seriously. The event is a demonstration of the company's unwavering commitment towards preservation of the island's natural beauty. The company also hopes that more participants will take part in this yearly event, as it is a highly commendable effort to protect the country's marine creatures and environment, and essential in order to secure better ecological system for the future.
Naoi Sudo, Managing Director of Sony Malaysia also stresses the importance of being a company committed towards environmentally responsibility. Redang Island Clean Up is one of the environmental programmes that Sony is involved in. The company also strives to increase staff awareness on fundamental environmental issues, and sees this event as one of the simple yet effective programmes to educate the public on marine conservation.
This event is endorsed by PADI Project AWARE (dive industry's leading non-profit organisation), Malaysian Sport Diving Association (MSDA) and supported by Tourism Malaysia.
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Tags: berjaya redang clean-up day 2007 island diving padi project aware sony malaysia marine environment cot
