When I first arrived in Ghana one of the things I was most
excited for was the beach. I wasn’t quite sure the beaches would live up to
some of the ones I’d seen in Zanizbar and Australia but I was psyched either
way. I’m from landlocked Zambia, I’ll take any beach.
I visited Labadi Beach, Accra’s most popular, on my first
day in the city. Back then I was happy to be at a beach for the first time in
years but I was somewhat disappointed by the litter I saw. It wasn’t an
overwhelming amount but enough to bother me. I found this to be true of other
beaches in Accra. They were beautiful but the litter reduced their beauty. (Littering
is one of my peeves. I will secretly, and sometimes not so secretly, judge you
for littering but I don’t do much about it.) So it was with absolute pleasure
that I participated in a beach cleanup along Afia Beach in Accra. The cleanup
was organized by the interestingly named NGO, Hipsters of Nature. It took place
on 17 September, which I learned was International Coastal Cleanup Day. I
participated along with my friends from the Humanist Association of Ghana.
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| The hashtag for the day. Borla is Twi for rubbish |
The work was confined to a small stretch of beach but yielded dozens of bags of trash and we couldn’t get it all (especially not the countless shards of plastic). Unsurprisingly, everyday items were part of the haul - plastic bottles, shoes, clothes, cigarette butts, bags, dolls, toothbrushes and old electronics. Chances are much of this stuff wasn’t discarded in that area. I wondered where my trash goes after it’s collected by Zoomlion. I have no idea, and that’s part of the problem. Usually it's 'out of sight, out of mind.'
Clearly I’m unfit - it wasn’t long before I was sore, tired
and sweating. However it felt good to do something about one of my pet peeves.
It also felt good to contribute in a small way (emphasis on “small”) to the
city I’ve stayed in for the last few months. It also made me think about what
ways I could contribute to my hometown once I return.
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| It was hard work but there was still time to laugh and goof around |
The task at hand seemed overwhelming at times. The beach
certainly looked cleaner but it would’ve been impossible for us to completely
clear it of trash on our own. Afia Beach had more trash on it than I’d seen on
previous visits - strong tides had brought in trash from the sea on to the
shore and made the task more arduous. Also, a few metres away from where worked
there was yet more trash that was left untouched. Ultimately though, I was glad
to have participated and wish there more beach cleanups. Cleaning up a small
stretch of beach on International Coastal Cleanup Day is a good start but
considering the scale of the problem, way more needs to be done.
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| Trash aside, the beach really is beautiful |
Ask anyone who has been to Ghana and seen the beaches what they think about them they and they will narrate something unappealing. I am Ghanaian and I don't like the state of our beaches. An honest tourist would tell you point blank that our beaches are dirty (with a few exceptions). Of course they shouldn't be so but they are and it breaks my heart to see them in such condition. After the rains a bulk of the filth generated in the City end up in the ocean. There isn't much irregular beach clean up exercises would do to keep them clean enough.
ReplyDeleteAs a child the beach used to be my escape to zone. Instead of being in church I would be at the beach. Back then they used not to be filled with this much plastic waste. Sachet water was not a thing. Only a few well off could afford to drink bottled water. Disposable cups and plates made of cheap plastic weren't everywhere as they are today but as the population grew and people's income moved upward a bit their consumption pattern changed as well. Today our beaches suffer as a result of our mindless consumption of plastic products. Alongside our consumption the appalling lack of urgency in solving our waste problems once and for all is crippling our coastline and tourism. Too bad for a country fortunate enough to have coastline.
You didn't pull any punches but better you the Ghanaian, than me. And it's true, the occasional cleanup won't help much. They need to happen way more often. While I've met some people who are bothered by the state of the beaches, there are also those who just accept it as a fact of life. "The beaches have litter. That's the way it is and that's the way it's been for a while." Ultimately though, it's not just about litter on beaches but waste management in general.
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