First ever CoCo public meeting a success!

Wow, am I excited! On Wednesday, Jan. 26, over 50 people showed up to the first ever public CoCo meeting! Held in the cafeteria of Garapan Elementary School, the meeting gave CoCo members a chance to ask the public what sorts of environmental concerns they had, and tell them a little about what CoCo does. I saw all sorts of people there: students, teachers, government employees, private sector folks… a HUGE thank you to everyone who attended!

After telling people (or reminding those who already knew) that CoCo is an interagency group, primarily composed of governmental folks working on environmental outreach and education, we got to the real heart of the meeting. We split everyone up into small groups, and asked them to identify their top three environmental concerns were.

Well, there was a lot of debate and conservation, but the overwhelming majority focused on litter and illegal dumping. If you’ve been reading this page, you’re probably already aware of some of the problems that these activities can cause, including risks to human health…not to mention how terrible litter looks! I mean, you wouldn’t toss a Coke can into your living room, so why would you toss it on the beach, where you’re hanging out and barbecuing?? Come on, people, let’s have a little care for how we live!

Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away. Anyway, trash is not the only thing we talked about at the CoCo meeting. People also had other concerns, including sewage outfall and invasive species. Look out for further articles in this space, telling you more about both of these issues. Plus, we’ll even include some of the great solutions that were discussed at the CoCo meeting.

So I know what you’re thinking now. Well, the first thing is to spread the word to your family and friends. When you see them toss a cigarette butt out the window, or carelessly drop their MacDonald’s wrapper by the side of the road, tell them how disrespectful they are being to the environment and to the community.

Also, join a trash pickup! Mark the following dates on your calendar, because the DEQ Cleanup Brigade is out there from 8-10am on the first Saturday of every month. This month they will meet at the LauLau Bay dive site, at 8am on Saturday, Feb. 5. DEQ will provide water, gloves, and trash bags, and if you participate regularly, you will be eligible to get fun rewards. The meeting location changes each month, so contact Glenn Arriola at 664-8500 for meeting details.

For the next few months, the dates are as follows:
Saturday, Feb 6 – Meet at LauLau Bay at 8 AM
Saturday, March 6
Saturday, April 3
Saturday, May 1
Saturday, June 5

In addition to these regularly scheduled events, there will be a lot of fun stuff happening during the Division of Environmental Quality’s Environmental Awareness Week. The EAW will provide you with a number of different ways to get involved. Whether you’re artistic and want to take part in a logo, essay, or poem competition, or you want to tackle that litter problem in a CNMI-wide cleanup, the EAW is your chance. We’ll definitely showcase the many events of the EAW on this page in the near future.

So, thanks again for your participation, and we’ll see you out there picking up trash!

CoCo