Local divers in Cape Maclear, a town on Malawi’s Nankumba Peninsula, at the southern end of Lake Malawi, surrounded by forested mountains, known for its sandy beaches and stunning granite rocks within Lake Malawi Park are removing underwater waste in the Malawi Lake through a HEEED - led project launched in 2023 to improve visibility for diving, snorkeling and protect biodiversity and tourism.
Lake Malawi is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania, is the fourth largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, the ninth largest lake in the world and the third largest and second deepest lake in the African continent.
Home to more species of fish than any other lake in the world, including at least 700 species of chichlids, a large, diverse, and widespread family of percomorph fish. Lake Malawi with its deep, clear waters and mountain backdrop is part of of Lake Malawi National Park, a protected reserve at the southern end of the lake, created with purpose of protecting the environment fish and aquatic habitats.
The Lake Malawi National Park was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, being of global importance for biodiversity conservation due particularly to its fish diversity with many hundreds of fish species, nearly all endemic.
To protect this treasure fifteen trained volunteers collect waste three times a week and use the skills and equipment to work as underwater tour guides, helping sustain the visitor experience.
Malawi’s environment regulator, MEPA, the principal agency for the protection and management of environment and natural resources, says it is working with universities to map underwater hotspots to guide a broader clean - up.
Waste build - up is driven by dumping and weak upland waste systems across the tri - national shoreline. A 2015 - 2018 beach study recorded nearly 500.000 litter items over 32 hectares, 80% plastic, while Malawi produces about 75.000 tonnes of plastic annually, most of it single - use.
Authorities have begun enoforcing a ban on thin plastic and community schemes are recycling and upcycling materials, with HEED exploring partnership with Clewat, a Finnish company based in Kokkola specializes on solving the plastic waste, excess biomass, oil spills and other pollution problems on seas, rivers and lakes, for larger - scale collection.
The measures aim to safeguard Lake Malawi, UNESCO - listed lake’s appeal and maintain tourism revenues at one of Malawi’s busiest beach destinations.
Link
https://atta.travel/resource/divers-tackle-lake-malawi-s-underwater-waste-to-protect-tourism.html
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