Persons left massive amounts of single-use plastics, aluminium cans, beer bottles and boxes on Mullet Bay Beach last weekend. Photo by Annee Blaum.
MULLET BAY--Visitors to Mullet Bay Beach seemed to have had a little too much fun last weekend, leaving behind massive amounts of unsightly garbage in the popular swimming and recreation area.
St. Maarten Nature Foundation said the litter included various types of single-use plastics, Styrofoam, beer bottles, aluminium cans and cardboard boxes, among other materials.
“Considering the lack of tourists on the island, it is clear that residents of St. Maarten should take the responsibility and accountability for this mess left behind and learn to clean up what they bring,” said the foundation.
“Leaving this mess behind clearly shows the lack of awareness and responsibility for our environment by certain residents. Everyone should understand that they seriously harm our ecosystem by littering,” said St. Maarten Nature Foundation Manager Melanie Meijer zu Schlochtern.
According to her, the large amount of litter left on the beach is indication that St. Maarten must implement a ban on single-use plastics and that businesses should use recyclable and biodegradable alternatives instead.
“People need to dispose of their trash responsibly, which means in a trash bin and not on the beach, in the environment or on public roads. Wind and rain can cause a significant amount of these plastic straws, cups and trash to end up in our ocean and environment. Therefore, we are asking all residents to dispose of their trash properly, and if bins are overfull take your trash to another bin or container,” she said.
The foundation was also disappointed by the presence of vehicle tracks on the beach that “could cause serious damage to sea turtle nests, with a very high likelihood of total nest destruction due to parking and driving on the beach.”
“Last year we reported several dead sea turtles, whereby even two sea turtles died in our trash, and hatching sea turtles were hampered [from – Ed.] reaching the ocean due to beach litter. Frequent beach-driving activities cause sea turtle eggs to crush and beach construction leaves no room for sea turtles to nest.
“Verified sea turtle nests appear to be scarce in the past years and the hatching success of our nests seems to be very low, indicating disturbances on the beach such as beach-driving or habitat-destruction. We are seriously concerned about the survival chances of our sea turtle population and urge [authorities] to increase and enforce the protection level of our precious beaches,” said Meijer zu Schlochtern.
