Leading up to the celebration of Earth Day this year, AboitizPower subsidiary Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI), in partnership with the Aboitiz Foundation, organized an underwater garbage cleanup with its volunteer “Scubasureros” in Barangay Bato last April 14, 2022.
“Scubasurero is a term coined from ‘scuba diving’ and ‘basurero’ or garbage collector,” explained Therma South Inc. (TSI) Reputation and Stakeholder Management manager Lou Jason Deligencia. “We have conducted this activity as part of our environmental commitment to help protect marine life, especially in the areas where we operate.”
“The idea for this activity came from TVI employees who are also divers,” he explained.
“They were diving in the beach just across TVI when they discovered trash stuck to the seabed, and so they’ve decided to tap us and other divers to conduct a wider underwater cleanup.”
Among the volunteers who participated in the event were TVI employees, community members, and local government officers. Local surfers from Toledo Local Breakers groups and members of the Young Environmentalists group of Barangay Cabitoonan also provided support to the event. Non-diver volunteers also joined the coastal cleanup in the area.
Deligencia said the company also takes into consideration its host community members who heavily rely on fishing as their main livelihood.
“Marine life in the area is so rich, but we need to ensure that it continues to thrive so that our local fishermen wouldn’t need to go farther out into the sea to catch any fish,” he added. “It will be more efficient for them to fish nearer the coast.”
“We also intend to put up an initiative in managing Crown of Thorns (COT) starfish infestation in the area. COT feeds on corals and if left unmanaged, will devour an entire reef colony in months. Without corals, the fish will find habitat elsewhere creating lower fish catch for our fisher friends,” he added.
