OSAKA (TR) – Volunteer scuba divers plunged into the murky waters of Osaka City’s Dotonbori River on May 30, hauling up sunken bicycles, discarded chairs and misplaced wallets as a part of the annual “Zero Waste” day cleanup effort, studies the Sankei Shimbun (May 30).
At round 7:30 a.m., 16 divers representing the environmental diving staff “Be a Diver,” Kansai TV, and the Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street Association strapped on air tanks and descended into the enduring waterway. The staff repeatedly dragged submerged particles from the river backside onto a ready boat.
Now in its second 12 months, the underwater cleanup initiative is pushed by native enterprise associations and broadcasters hoping to rid the world of submerged junk and current a clear metropolis to an inflow of vacationers.
“The visibility was worse than last time, but I managed to collect empty bottles,” mentioned 49-year-old Rokujin Hori, a diver taking part for the second consecutive time. “I hope it gets cleaned up so that eventually, the river itself becomes something people can truly enjoy.”
KAREN, a member of the music unit LUV Okay RAFT who additionally participated within the dive, expressed hopes that the grueling effort serves as a actuality test for the general public. “By doing this cleanup and sending out a message, I want people to be strictly aware that littering is completely unacceptable,” she mentioned.
Above the water, the cleanup blitz continued because the Chuo Ward Office and the native buying avenue affiliation co-hosted a “full wash” of the well-known Ebisubashi Bridge. Around 70 contributors, together with households with youngsters, broke a sweat wielding long-handled brushes to aggressively scrub down the bustling image of the Minami nightlife district.