Thattekkad rows safe with plastic

Kochi: A boat made from plastic bottles collected from the ecologically fragile region of Thattekkad bird sanctuary shows an innovative method in dealing with the menace of plastic waste.

The boat was made by a group of youths associated with the Thattekkad-based Nature and Wildlife Team by collecting 1,460 1-litre water bottles littered around the famed bird sanctuary and its neighbourhood.
 

“The entire credit for the boat belongs to K Sathish, who is engaged in designing and constructing buildings”, said Nobi Paulose, a member of the Nature and Wildlife Team. “We thought of an innovative method of plastic disposal as we had many times seen sacks of plastic materials which were stored in local shops. The idea of a boat using plastic bottles came to mind during the search for a meaningful manner of disposing them”, Mr. Nobi said.

Mr. Sathish, who is a member of the team, then made the design and used reed for making the basic framework of the boat. “We collected the bottles in two days time mainly from Thattekkad and Urulanthanni, approximately 10 km away from the bird sanctuary,” he said.

The boat which is 5 feet wide and 13 feet long can easily accommodate five people. The bottles placed in the reed frame in an upside position are tied with jute fibre. “The boat is safe and six of us have traveled in it”, Mr. Nobi said.