James Kon
Some 443 kilogrammes (kg) of trash was collected during a river clean-up organised by Green Brunei in collaboration with Mitsubishi Corporation (Brunei Liaison Office) at Kampong Sungai Siamas yesterday morning.
The trash collected comprised plastic bottles, a fridge door, seat cushions, face masks, food wrappers and a cupboard. Permanent Secretary (Municipal and District) at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) Abdul Walid bin Haji Matassan, representing Minister of Home Affairs Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Ahmaddin bin Haji Abdul Rahman, attended as guest of honour.
Ambassador of Japan to Brunei Darussalam Maeda Toru and Mitsubishi Corporation (Brunei Liaison Office) country representative Tadashi Hara as well as Brunei-Muara District Officer, village heads of all four zones of Kampong Ayer and principal of Siamas Primary School also participated.
The ambassador said the amount of rubbish collected was overwhelming.
“We together collected over 400 kilogrammes of trash. This was a very tiny part of the whole picture. We learnt that we need to do a lot more, in a systematic way,” he said.
Hara meanwhile, said the event was part of the environmental education programme. “Besides the cleanup, the primary objective was to further raise awareness on how to maintain the cleanliness of the surrounding environment. Therefore, everyone has a significant role to play in preserving Brunei Darussalam’s beautiful nature,” he said.
Co-founder and Community Engagement Director of Green Brunei Khairunnisa binti Haji Ash’ari said the aim of the event was to reduce river pollution and raise awareness on the importance of a clean river for a sustainable future.
It was also to encourage public awareness and environmental responsibility focussing on the importance of proper waste disposal, she said.
The event attracted around 90 participants comprising students from Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB), Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali (UNISSA), and Sungai Siamas Primary School; as well as representatives from Brunei Climate Change Secretariat (BCCS), the Embassy of Japan and public members.
The event is one of the activities under the environmental education project, supported by the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (JASTRe), Fire and Rescue Department and Brunei-Muara District Office.