Seven Panama rivers are on the list of the most polluted in the world
Seven rivers in Panama are on the list of the most polluted in the world, according to a study by the organization The Ocean Cleanup.
Through a study, the organization The Ocean Cleanup identified that seven of the thousand most polluted rivers in the world are in Panama.
These freshwater basins located in the province of Panama and Panama Oeste are: Río Abajo, Matías Hernández, Juan Díaz, Matasnillo, Caimito, as well as the mouths to the Pacific Ocean in the Panama Canal and in the province of Chiriquí, the mouth from the Nuevo and Platanal rivers.
The indicated basins are close to urbanizations and commercial and industrial activities.
Only last February, the Ministry of the Environment (MiAmbiente) reported that it would be conducting a consultancy with a value of $ 90,000 to identify and characterize the quality of water in rivers near sensitive projects.
However, Miguel Flores, national director of Environmental Verification of the MiAmbiente recognized that there are deficiencies and they do not have the necessary funds for laboratory studies of the 51 basins of the country, so they try to attend the most polluted rivers.
Flores stressed that the system of ecological bars traps solids that also supports the NGO Marea Verde have served to prevent more than a ton of plastic from reaching the sea in 2019 through the Curundú, Cárdenas and Matasnillo rivers.
Aldair Figueroa, regional coordinator of the environmental NGO Las Marabundas explained that each year in Panama, the rivers receive 11 thousand tons of solid waste, equivalent to 102,229 tons of garbage per day, which flow into the Panamanian seas and coasts.
The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit NGO whose objective is to clean 90% of the plastic pollution in the oceans, through the development and application of advanced technologies; every year it removes millions of tons of garbage.
These freshwater basins located in the province of Panama and Panama Oeste are: Río Abajo, Matías Hernández, Juan Díaz, Matasnillo, Caimito, as well as the mouths to the Pacific Ocean in the Panama Canal and in the province of Chiriquí, the mouth from the Nuevo and Platanal rivers.
The indicated basins are close to urbanizations and commercial and industrial activities.
Only last February, the Ministry of the Environment (MiAmbiente) reported that it would be conducting a consultancy with a value of $ 90,000 to identify and characterize the quality of water in rivers near sensitive projects.
However, Miguel Flores, national director of Environmental Verification of the MiAmbiente recognized that there are deficiencies and they do not have the necessary funds for laboratory studies of the 51 basins of the country, so they try to attend the most polluted rivers.
Flores stressed that the system of ecological bars traps solids that also supports the NGO Marea Verde have served to prevent more than a ton of plastic from reaching the sea in 2019 through the Curundú, Cárdenas and Matasnillo rivers.
Aldair Figueroa, regional coordinator of the environmental NGO Las Marabundas explained that each year in Panama, the rivers receive 11 thousand tons of solid waste, equivalent to 102,229 tons of garbage per day, which flow into the Panamanian seas and coasts.
The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit NGO whose objective is to clean 90% of the plastic pollution in the oceans, through the development and application of advanced technologies; every year it removes millions of tons of garbage.