Cleanup in Hammam Damt for World Environment Day

SANA�A � A cleanup campaign is to take place at the popular tourist attraction and spa of Hammam Damt in Al-Dale�a governorate.
The unusual campaign on June 5 will see dozens of helpers clean the largest of the volcanic craters in Hammam Damt and its surroundings from the waste left behind there by visitors over the years.

The event, which is timed to mark World Environment Day, brings together the Ministry of Water and Environment, the German Embassy, the Social Fund for Development, the Governor of al-Dale�a, the Cleaning Fund of Hammam Damt, Shamlan Group and Universal Hotels.
All the groups �have decided to send a message to the Yemeni public by carrying out a cleaning campaign of several days at one of Yemen�s prime tourist attractions�, a press release from the German Embassy said.

�Illegal waste disposal is an all-too-familiar sight in Yemen, with trash strewn along the roadsides, rivers, and lakes and posing a major hazard to human health and the environment, as well as making life unpleasant for locals and visitors alike,� the release added.
�The majority of local councils cannot manage the growing volume of waste produced in their cities.�

 A relatively large proportion of waste is left uncollected on the streets and in vacant lots, where the waste attracts vermin and insects which are carriers of diseases. Moreover, municipal solid waste has the potential to contaminate water supplies.
Improving waste management is recognised as a major environmental challenge at the international level.

 The plan of implementation agreed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development of 2002 in Johannesburg calls for action to �prevent and minimise waste and maximise reuse, recycling and use of environmentally friendly alternative materials�.
Furthermore, a lack of understanding on solid waste issues deteriorates the situation. The willingness to devote time and energy to cleanness and waste reduction are limited.

 Even in places with the provision of waste bins it is a common practise to dispose of waste in the nearest convenient place such as open drains or areas around waste bins. Some residents dispose of their waste in someone else�s neighbourhood, without considering the effect of their actions on other member of the community and the environment.
A constraint upon community participation is the strongly held attitude that waste management is in the whole responsibility of the Government.

Consequently, the public must be made aware of the need for proper waste management and strongly encouraged to actively participate in the protection of their local environment and their natural heritage.
This is the common goal of the partners organising this event.
The campaign will be officially launched on 5 June, at 11 am. All members of the public and of the media are cordially invited.

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