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RAISING AWARENESS: Ms Lim (right) and other Singaporeans helping local volunteers clean Manila's polluted bay yesterday. -- ST PHOTO: ALASTAIR MCINDOE
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MANILA - SPORTING red caps, members of Manila's Singaporean community joined around 400 local volunteers to clean up Manila Bay to mark Earth Day yesterday.
The organisers of the worldwide campaign said millions of people 'from Tokyo to Togo' were taking part in hundreds of events. They expect this year's Earth Day to be the biggest since the annual event aimed at promoting 'environmental citizenship' was founded in 1970.
This year's theme is water. Among the events in the United States was the Green Apple Festival at the weekend, which culminated on Sunday night with eight free music festivals held simultaneously at landmark locations across the country.
At the same time, Tokyo's Yoyogi Park hosted talks and exhibitions, as well as an organic farmers' market. The entire event was powered by green energy.
And this Saturday, Moscow will host an 'eco-festival', where 10,000 people are expected to take part in river and pond clean-ups, as well as learn about environmental issues.
On the same day in Buenos Aires, there will be an arts and cultural event, including films and music, aimed at raising environmental awareness from 2pm to dawn the next day
Meanwhile, in Manila's Earth Day event yesterday, Singapore Ambassador to the Philippines Lim Kheng Hua and her embassy staff led 40 Singaporeans, many of them expats, in helping with the clean-up.
'Manila Bay used to be a favourite tourist draw and unfortunately, it has been polluted over the years. This is not beyond redress, but it will be a long haul,' Ms Lim said as she jabbed a sharpened bamboo stick into a garbage-filled rock pool near a jetty.
'Obviously, today's effort is very modest, but everyone here is trying to create more awareness about the problem.'
Meanwhile, many children from the nearby Tondo slum district, ignoring health warnings, played in the bay's murky water. Anglers occasionally got a bite and reeled in puny-looking fish.
Highlighting water as the Earth Day theme, the Singapore Embassy flew in bottles of Singapore's recycled Newater for the volunteers to sample.
'It is a bit scary, but the taste is neutral, there is no after-taste,' local television presenter Rachel del Mar said after taking a few sips.
amcindoe@yahoo.com
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