One of the biggest issues faced by us in this current era would be beach pollution. Billions of pounds of pollution end up in our ocean each year. Beach pollution is any harmful substances that contaminate our coasts, ranging from trash such as plastic litter to sewage, pesticides, and oil. Out of these, litter is the most visible type of beach pollution. Beachgoers who fail to dispose of their trash properly contribute to this pollution. Polluted beaches can directly affect us. It poses a serious health risk to people who come in contact with dirty water and sand especially those with a compromised immune system. Swimmers can suffer from neurological disorders, respiratory ailments, and pinkeye.
More
than 100,000 seabirds, sea turtles, and other marine lives die each year after
ingesting plastic or entangled in it. Plastic that ends up at the beach shore
can be easily washed into the ocean by rain. Consistent mechanical abrasion by
waves and UV radiation can cause larger particles to break down easily into
smaller particles. This allows marine life to consume these particles mistaking
them for food. This causes them to choke, sustain an internal injury or starve.
The consumed plastic particles can be moved through the food chain eventually
in the stomach of seafood-eating humans. Plastic pollution had affected the
reproduction rate of turtles by altering the temperature of the sand where
incubation of eggs typically occurs. This also affects heat-sensitive beach
dwellers like crabs, mussels, and snails.
Spic
& Span, Dat’s the Plan, is the beach clean-up program MAHSA UNIVERSITY Sustainability Team (M.U.S.T) has come up with
to clean up the beaches around Malaysia and our first landmark was Pantai Morib
Banting, Selangor which we went on the 18th of January 2022. This initiative aligns itself with the three of M.U.S.T
goals which are “Healthcare (Goal 1)”, “Life on land & water (Goal 5)”,
and “Clean water and sanitation (Goal 7)”. We want to clean the everyday
plastic that has accumulated itself on the shoreline brought by the currents
and the trash on the beach. At the same time,
we hope this initiative increases awareness and educate individuals about the problem
caused by beach pollution. We hope to also contribute to the community through
the upcoming clean-ups for the year while fostering team work amongst the MUST
members.
Look out for our next
destination and don’t hesitate to be part of our efforts. Let’s make this
ripple effect work and get more people to realise the importance of keeping our
beach clean.
We at MUST would like to thank our University and our advisor Prof Dr Srikumar Chakravarthi for their continuous support to our efforts.
Words by Nisha
Yoogan
Photos taken during our Beach-Clean up at Morib. We had some videos shot during our clean-up as well, do watch them on our MAHSA Instagram and TikTok Channel
