Let us take a dive into the world of marine waste with the assistance of Neil Agius and his incredible adventure across the seas of Malta. His 140km record-breaking swim was supported by Wave of Change and local NGO Żibel as part of a marine waste collection effort.

Wave of Change is all about raising awareness on issues related to pollution, obesity and inclusion. Its approach for making way for a desired sustainable future is to endorse individuals to bring about unity and inspire the Maltese public.

Neil Agius is one of their long-standing driving forces. In a previous event, he declared that if he could swim from Sicily to Malta for 33 hours, anyone can dedicate 3 minutes to a clean up. And now, he is here to take this all to the next level…

Neil Agius, who on established the world record by swimming 140 km around the Maltese Islands without interruptions, had to endure the cold of the nighttime sea as he completed his journey at Għar Lapsi. He was met with an army of supporters, many of whom had come from Wied iż-Żurrieq to witness his wondrous feat.

As the waves began to pick up, trouble followed. The rib boat intended to act as his guide was unable to reach the shore. Luckily, Neil had the help of his supporters with lights pointing him towards the land and fellow swimmers stepping in.

Three days after beginning his quest, Neil climbed the ladder and was met with roars of cheers and a record now in his hands before being taken away for a health checkup.

“Viva Malta” were his first words after completing the challenge. He did it for his country and in turn, we have a hero.

The Numbers

Proud as we may be of a record breaker, this event also served as a cleanup effort. From the combined efforts of Żibel and volunteers in Spinola Bay and St. Thomas Bay, a total of 791.88 kg of marine waste managed to be collected from the coasts.

Without accounting for all that was discarded in Żibel Tribe Bins (the subject of a previous post on this website), below is the data for the different categories that were extracted:

• Plastic: 122.76 kg

• Glass: 64.70 kg

• Metal: 264.40 kg

• Mixed waste: 311.20 kg

• Fishing: 22.82 kg

A big well done to Neil Agius and to the organisations and volunteers involved in cleaning up the coast on this special occasion in order to raise awareness on the importance of clean seas!

By Denzel Lanzon, for Esplora