By The Star Staff
As part of his commitment to a “Clean 100x Vieques,” the mayor of that offshore island municipality, José “Junito” Corcino Acevedo, announced Tuesday that some 688 pounds of solid waste was collected in the area of Cayo Esperanza.
“A ‘Vieques 100x Clean’ is an initiative we are implementing to promote a culture of recycling and civic responsibility in solid waste management,” the mayor said in a written statement. “As part of this effort, and in conjunction with a number of important non-profit organizations, as well as volunteers from the private sector and staff from the Municipal Recycling Office, we visited the Cayo Esperanza area where we managed to collect almost 700 pounds of garbage.”
The Vieques mayor has established a public policy to ensure that 35% of solid waste in Vieques can be processed through recycling mechanisms, thus facilitating a cleaner and safer environment for all residents.
“I want to thank the non-profit entities, as well as all the volunteers such as Gloria Ramis and Omayra Medina, as well as those from the Vieques Recycling Partnership, and Ticatove, among many others, for always saying that they are willing to improve the quality of life of the people of Vieques,” Corcino Acevedo added as part of the closing activities of the 54th edition of Planet Earth Week.
According to numerous studies, about 49,000 pounds of trash is discarded in Vieques every year.