19 Feb 2018

Vanuatu bottled water company leads plastic litter clean-up

3:41 pm on 19 February 2018

A Vanuatu bottled water company is leading a project to clean up plastic litter in a part of the main island Efate.

Clean up team outside Cellovila

Clean up team outside Cellovila Photo: Len Garae / Vanuatu Daily Post

Vanuatu Beverage is partnering with two other local companies - toilet paper and plastics manufacturer Cellovila, and theatre company Wan Smol Bag - to clean up Mele Village and beach front.

Mele Village, which is located six kilometres outside Port Vila, has a population of around 7000 people, and one of the longest beaches in the country.

The companies have conducted similar clean-up efforts in two Vila suburbs, Tebakor and Malapoa.

Vanuatu Beverage's Business Development Manager Teiva Durand said the cleanup initiative was the first of many more.

He said he hoped it would raise awareness of the importance of countering littering in Vanuatu.

He said Vanuatu Beverage is separating plastic bottles from other waste and storing them until a relevant plastic bottle strategy is put in place.