Volunteers mobilize to clean Brazilian beaches
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The Marine Biodiversity Conservation Network (Biomar) coordinated cleanup drives along the Brazilian coast throughout September as part of World Cleanup Day.
The Project Coral Vivo led these efforts, uniting projects focused on albatrosses, humpback whales, corals, bottlenose dolphins, and Brazilian meros, with support from schools, communities, local organizations, public managers, and volunteers. These cleanup events not only removed trash but also sorted, weighed, and recorded the collected materials.
Biomar uses this data to improve environmental diagnoses, contribute to national and international databases, and inform research, education, and public policy. The initiative also aims to raise awareness within communities about the impact of trash, especially plastics, on marine biodiversity and ecosystems. Since 2018, Biomar’s combined actions have engaged over 4,400 volunteers and removed around 17 tons of waste from the Brazilian coastline.
In 2025, 1,813 people worked across five states, clearing 28 kilometers of beaches and collecting 4.7 tons of waste, with plastic accounting for 36.6% of the weight and 51% of the items. Cleanup events are scheduled through September 26 in Prado, Porto Seguro, and Arraial d’Ajuda (Bahia), São Sebastião (São Paulo), Macaé (Rio de Janeiro), Maceió (Alagoas), Cumuruxatiba and Mucuri (Bahia), and Barreiros (Pernambuco).
Events in Prado, Bahia and São Sebastião, São Paulo have already taken place, and the schedule includes opportunities for public participation with specific times and locations determined by each municipality.
