Kralendijk, Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles, July 13, 2009

On Saturday, July 11, 2009, 35 individuals made up of tourists and residents met together under a perfect Bonaire sky to pitch in and help to keep Bonaire's reefs beautiful. Divers, snorkelers, and those who assisted on land worked seamlessly together to process a large amount of trash removed from the island's yacht anchorage.

During a complete briefing by Susan Davis of NetTech, it was explained what trash should be recovered and what should be left behind, as well as how to keep from damaging any marine animals. Shortly afterward, the divers entered the water, descended and began to fill their bags with trash. When filled, the bags were brought to the surface to those working as shore support. There, Dive Friends crew and volunteers checked once again to be sure no marine creatures had been inadvertently included, counted and tallied the trash for statistics, and then disposed of it responsibly.

It was only nine months since this area was last cleaned, but still a large amount of trash was extracted and properly disposed: 3 plastic bags, 93 beverage cans, 23 pieces of clothing or shoes, 4 tin cans, 3 bait containers, 8 fishing lures, 15 light sticks, 3 tools, 1 can of paint, 23 pieces of dinnerware, 11 pieces of tissue or newspaper, 1 straw, 2 toys, and 4 pieces of metal. Additionally, 2 fishing nets, 7 pieces of rope, 10 pieces of fiberglass, 1 strapping band, 1 spark plug, 5 pieces of building materials, 1 small tire, 3 towels, 9 pieces of wood, 25 pieces of plastic, 3 wires, 18 glass pieces, and 3 pieces of linoleum were also tallied.

The group was able to retrieve even more trash, which was more than could be processed and counted on Saturday. These piles of trash are in the shallows and will be removed, checked for marine animals, and tallied next weekend by Dive Friends staff. After the dive, all participants and their families were welcomed back for a Pot Luck BBQ—Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech, the sponsors of the Bonaire cleanups, provided drinks and main courses, while participants supplied side dishes.

Images from this cleanup are available online at the Bonaire Insider Photo Gallery at http://www.bonaireinsider.com/index.php/gallery_bonaire/category/C65/.

The next quarterly underwater cleanup is scheduled for Saturday, April 10, 2010. Additional information about the cleanups is available at: http://www.dive-friends-bonaire.com/clean_up_dives.html. All are welcome to join in.

Dive Friends Bonaire is one of Bonaire's premier diving facilities with convenient locations in Kralendijk, at Hamlet Bonaire, Dive Inn, and at Port Bonaire and has two retail stores in Kralendijk. For additional information, visit http://www.dive-friends-bonaire.com.

NetTech is Bonaire's largest Internet marketing company, providing the popular web sites InfoBonaire (http://www.infobonaire.com) The Bonaire Insider (http://www.bonaireinsider.com), Bonaire Surveys (http://www.bonairesurveys.com), and Paradise Rebates (http://www.paradiserebates.com). For additional information, visit http://www.nettech.an.