Team Dirty Dolphins HK - our amazing group of open water swimmers who are participating in the ACUC Competition for the second year - have come up with a very unique way to raise awareness about the issue of coastal pollution and plastic consumption in Hong Kong. They will be painting a collective mural, led by artist Szabotage, at XXX (location). The mural will be xxx (add blurb) and it will be ready on XXX (date).
For those who visit the mural, there will be a QR code available to this web page, and below, Dirty Dolphins’ message written by Captain Edie Hu, with a call to action for everyone.
Amazing work team! We are so proud of you!
Look around you. Plastic is everywhere! Sadly, it ends up in the ocean and it breaks up into tiny micro-plastic particles that are swallowed up by fish, birds, seals, dolphins and whales. The plastic can float for thousands of miles in the open sea. In addition to the plastic, styrofoam is a major problem. It is used in commercial fishing, as well as takeout containers from our favourite restaurants. Like plastic, these containers do not disappear, they break down into millions of tiny particles and float on the surface tempting fish to eat them. When they wash ashore, the particles imbed into the sand and rocks and get washed out again when the tide comes in repeating the cycle.
A recent beach clean up from a nearby Clearwater Bay beach filled 170 bags in just two days. The garbage was mainly commercial fishing styrofoam and plastic from food containers (bottles, bottle caps, takeout containers, spoons, forks, chopstick wrappers, food wrappers, cups, lids and plastic bags). Everyone can do their part to help reduce this waste.
Ways to help:
Easy
Bring your own water bottle
Bring your own cup when you buy coffee
Bring your own shopping bag
Refuse cutlery for takeouts
Dispose all of your own trash in the proper receptacle
Sort your trash for recycling
Medium
Participate in beach cleanups
Support restaurants and shops who serve in sustainable containers
Buy less plastic (plastic toys, individually wrapped foods, drinks in plastic bottles)
Eat less fish and meats
The Extra Mile
Go vegetarian or vegan
Stop buying products in one-time use plastic containers/wrappers
Lobby the government to ban styrofoam
Teach others about the importance of reducing plastics
We are the Dirty Dolphins, a team of environmentally motivated open water swimmers who took part in the Adventure Clean Up Challenge 2021. For more information on the Adventure Clean Up Challenge, see https://www.adventurecleanup.org and Instagram @adventurecleanup and @dirty_dolphins_hk
This mural is by local Clearwater Bay resident artist Szabotage. For more on his art, see https://szabotage.com.hk and Instagram @szabotage.me
Be part of the solution, not the problem.
