Tidying Up Voice of the South and local communities come together to clean up the shores of the Red Sea    By   Mohamed ElHebeishy

A group of hotels, camps and diving centers along the Southern Red Sea, calling themselves ‘Voice of the South,’ took on the task of removing the trash scattered between Quseir and Wadi El-Gemal. The Voice of the South cleanup event took place on September 20, covering eight sites over a 6.5-kilometer stretch of coastline and tackling both on-land refuse and underwater waste. The sites consisted mainly of bays, locally known as sharms and marsas.

In an attempt to make the campaign a communal effort and to increase awareness regarding the importance of keeping the environment clean, Voice of the South invited local schoolchildren from Quseir and Marsa Alam to participate. Some 245 people turned out to clean up the land and sea, including 120 schoolchildren and 117 divers. Local workers and even tourists were also invited to take part in the effort. Several sponsors provided the required transportation to and from the main cities and diving sites.

Mohamed ElHebeishy Voice of the South volunteers cleared off more than 3,000 kg of trash from the Red Sea coast.

Rangers from Wadi El-Gemal National Park not only participated in the actual cleanup, they also volunteered the park’s vehicles to help transport the trash. In total, 429 bags of garbage were hauled away.

“[There were] more than 3,000 kilograms of rubbish that we were able to clean up in just one day,” says Hesham Mostafa Kamel, general manager of Red Sea Diving Safari and an organizing force behind Voice of the South. “Surely the communal and environmental gain to all of us is valuable. If we don’t protect our environment today, there will be nothing to leave to our children.”

Mohamed ElHebeishy A successful cleanup day

The helping hands of Voice of the South