Volunteers to clean up Dibbeen forest on Saturday

AMMAN — Some 300 volunteers, mostly university students, will clean up the Dibbeen Forest Reserve on Saturday, campaign organisers said Wednesday.

The Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) is organising the campaign for the sixth consecutive year with the aim of raising public awareness on the need to stop littering and to preserve nature reserves from pollution, according to the organisers.

“A total of 300 people volunteered to participate in the campaign. Most of those registered are college students… Dibbeen Forest Reserve was selected because it is a major attraction for picnickers during the summer and, unfortunately, litter is everywhere in the forest,” RSCN Public Relations Coordinator Alaa Abdo told The Jordan Times.

The RSCN has invited people, including children, to take part in the campaign, and will provide buses to transport participants at 8:30am on Saturday from its headquarters in Jubeiha.

Located in Ajloun Governorate, 70km northwest of Amman, Dibbeen forest is a sanctuary for several globally endangered species, as it is home to at least 17 threatened species and globally significant biodiversity, according to the RSCN.

The Dibbeen clean-up campaign is part of the 2014 Clean Up the World Campaign, which started in 1989 when Australian yachtsman and builder Ian Kiernan, appalled by the amount of rubbish he came across while sailing, organised a clean-up of Sydney Harbour.

The campaign went global in 1993, with Sydney becoming Clean Up the World headquarters, gathering hundreds of members from around the globe, ranging from local community groups to national campaigns, who carry out environmental projects throughout the year, according to its website.