MOBOR: For the last couple of years, Anita Fernandes from Mobor in Cavelossim has taken up an interesting hobby, one that helps her give back to the environment but also leaves her quite exasperated.
Mobor, which is nestled between the beach and the Arabian sea on one side and River Sal on the other side, is a beautiful place and postcard worthy. However, if one goes for a walk by the river side as Anita does on a daily basis, you are shocked to see the amount of garbage, especially plastic waste getting washed ashore on the banks of the river.
Pointing out that this is waste from the sea and river, which flows back and settles on land during low-tide, Anita has made it her mission to clean up the riverbank of all such waste and she has been doing this work on a daily basis.
“During the low tide, I can see only plastic waste…. like plastic wraps, bottles, diapers, glasses, nylon ropes etc gets accumulated on this stretch of River Sal. During high tide it goes back into the river and then it ends up in the ocean…. thus makes life miserable for the ocean’s living creatures. I feel very sad and taken aback when I see so much trash floating in the river,” Anita added.
Having been born and brought up in Cavelossim and later getting married to restaurateur Rosario Barretto from the same village, the picturesque riverside is no longer what it was as compared to her younger days.
The mother of two, recalls how they used to go fishing here, cross the river by canoe as a means of transport to other villages and how the river has always been a big part of their lives.
There are many families across Goa who have the good fortune of having a river close to their houses and this issue of garbage surfacing by the river banks has troubled coastal communities across the State.
Anita, who has done her BA in History from Dhempe College of Arts & Science, feels that more awareness needs to be done to save the rivers and also make the public understand why dumping garbage into the river is very bad.
While her work has inspired her family, friends, neighbours and even tourists to understand the gravity of the issue, Anita believes there has to be a consistent and pan-Goa solution as she herself has seen how the river bank, which she cleans today, is filled with garbage the next day.
Her loyal pet dog Simba keeps her company while Anita physically carries all the waste lying on the river bank There have been instances where young children have also done their bit to clean the river giving hope that the future generation will be more conscientious than the present one.
While Anita voluntarily collects this garbage every week and hands it over to the village panchayat for their waste collection drive, she lamented that this type of pollution has been occurring for years now.
Having seen the extent of the garbage firsthand, Anita is also very concerned about the plight of local traditional fishermen, whose livelihood is dependent on these rivers and are getting affected by this garbage menace.
“I try my level best to collect the trash which comes from the river and give it for recycling. The main source of this trash comes from the land, which means people living in the villages fail to properly manage their plastic waste and then it ends up in the river,’ said Anita.
“It is sad that all this litter finally gets drained into the sea at Betul. This then causes great damage to the aquatic life that swims through the waste and gets entangled into the waste, which makes it difficult for them to survive,” she added further.
