Several organisations are working towards getting the Hout Bay Harbour, Blue Flag Marina status; Junk Stars are using their organisation to educate children about recycling.
Cape Town, South Africa (11 February 2022) – Recycling is a great opportunity for children from disadvantaged communities. Through the help of Junk Stars, a recycling initiative set up in Hout Bay, children get to purchase items such as groceries, toiletries, and school supplies.
A group of volunteers created the Junk Stars to help clean the harbour of plastic pollution. A lot of the pollution found in the harbour ends up there from the surrounding villages. Giving the children the opportunity to collect recyclables for rewards prevents litter from ending up in the harbour.
It is a collaborative effort between the organisation, the community, and the children. The community helps by way of volunteering and stocking the swop shop.
Every Saturday morning, children from the local community bring their bags of collected recyclables to a PETCO-sponsored bright green shipping container in the harbour. Here their bags are weighed and assigned a value in points, which the children then use to make their purchases.
“The converted container is a secure lock-up facility with slots for sorting recyclables into different bins, keeping the waste neatly and safely out of sight. While it is a JunkStars youth initiative, businesses and members of the public are also welcome to use it as a drop-off site.” – PETCO
Hout Bay Blue Flag Goals
Blue Flag beaches are some of the best beaches globally, and the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) assess all submitted South African beaches to decide which get the coveted blue flag status.
WESSA uses 33 criteria to determine if a beach meets the level of service excellence required for Blue Flag recognition. Each beach is measured in four categories: Environmental Education and Awareness, Water Quality, Environmental Management, and Safety Services.
Hout Bay organisations are collaborating to reach their goal of having Blue Flag Marina Status by 2030. They set up the Blue Bay 2030 campaign, and recycling awareness has become a critical element of this drive.
Junk Stars are playing a vital role in this goal! You can learn more about the organisation via their Facebook here.
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