Chevron Joins International Coastal Cleanup Day

BATANGAS, Philippines. Sept. 25, 2010 – Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), marketer of the popular Caltex brand of fuels and lubricants, with more than 400 Chevron employees, contractors and their families as well as non-CPI stakeholders took part in cleaning up the only coastline of San Pascual, Batangas, which straddles the Chevron Batangas Terminal (BT), in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of International Coastal Cleanup Day (ICC). 

Famous TV and movie celebrities, as well as old and new contestants from the Amazing Race Asia, which is being sponsored by Caltex, joined the Chevron volunteers – making the clean-up effort more bearable under the sizzling sun.  The celebrities were led by Christopher de Leon, who is also on official duty as the Chairman on Tourism and Environment Protection of the Batangas Provincial Board. 

As a result, a total of 277 garbage bags of non-biodegradable trash and 1,560 bags of biodegradable waste with a total gross weight of 13.8 metric tons were collected from the 500 meter coastline of BT by 10:00 a.m.  All biodegradable wastes were dumped in a pit for composting while plastics, rubber, metals and other non-biodegradables where hauled off-site for recycling and proper disposal. 

ICC is an annual tradition at Chevron which promotes not only caring for the environment but also its culture of volunteerism wherein employees are encouraged to step out of the office and offer their time and efforts to worthwhile community projects. 

ICC is a worldwide activity which started 25 years ago and is spearheaded by the Ocean Conservancy to address the alarming garbage and debris problem in oceans which threatens the lives of various marine creatures, bringing ecological imbalance and affecting weather patterns. 

“Chevron has always been a participant of the coastal cleanup for the past seven years with four of those years in Batangas Terminal. This is part of our commitment to protect the people and the environment, and a show of our strong spirit of volunteerism," said Mark Quebral, Manager for Policy, Government and Public Affairs of Chevron. 

“We encourage our employees to bring their families to this activity because it’s a great way to spend time and learn more about the environment while being involved in a meaningful volunteer effort. It’s also heartening to see that participants are increasing annually,” shared Vic Calimag, Manager of Batangas Terminal. 

BT has been a major facility of Chevron, formerly Caltex, for over 60 years and its lengthy shoreline has been home to various marine animals such as sea turtles and even visits by whale sharks.