For many years, Mr. Dao Dang Cong Trung, 43, residing at Duy Tan Street, Hai Chau District, and his diving team have got involved in collecting seabed trash to clean up the marine environment and protect coral reefs in Da Nang.

Mr. Trung's diving team collects an average of about 15kg of all kinds of waste in each collection session.

On August 24, Trung's diving team consisting of 12 members gathered at the Man Thai Beach in Tho Quang Ward, Son Tra District to collect trash from the seabed.

All they need to bring were a pair of flippers, diving goggles, snorkel, protective gloves and a knife which is used to cut fishing nets entangled in coral reefs.

More than 50 empty beer cans, pieces of plastic bottles, plastic bags, footwear and about 15 meters of fishing nets were collected by the team after about two hours.

Over the past more than 3 years, Mr. Trung, and the diving club in Thanh Khe District, have collected thousands of beer cans, plastic bottles and many pieces of fishing nets on the seabed.

Since the trash could be hidden in all nooks and crannies, the volunteers have to pay close attention to their work and to avoiding being cut by sharp corals.

Each time divers enter the sea, they will dive for about 1.5 minutes. During that time, they determine where there is trash to deal with. Then from there, the divers operate according to the depth of water. Usually, divers will dive at a depth of about 4-9 meters to pick up 2-3 bottles and plastic items.

According to Mr. Trung, in addition to breathing, divers must also focus on flippers when cutting pieces of nets entangled in coral. If you don't pay attention, when you're almost out of breath and get caught in the net, the risk is unpredictable.

“At a depth of 3-10 meters, beer cans and plastic items on the seabed never stay in one place, but just float with the water. Once, I kept chasing beer cans, so I lost my breath and drank a lot of water," said Trung.

The above meaningful work not only helps the beaches of Da Nang to be cleaner and more beautiful, but also helps to spread love of nature and raise awareness of environmental protection among locals and visitors.

Deputy Head of the Management Board of the Son Tra Peninsula and Da Nang Tourism Beaches Tran Dai Nghia highlighted the meaningfulness of the voluntary work of Mr. Trung and the diving team in Thanh Khe District in directly contributing to protecting the city’s ecosystem.

Mr. Trung and his diving team often participate in trash collection work in the coastal areas of Da Nang or wherever they set foot.

Coral reefs on the Man Thai seabed are covered with pieces of fishing nets, plastic, and beer cans.

Pieces of fishing nets lying on the coral reefs of the Man Thai seabed are gradually removed by Mr. Trung and his diving team.

Trash is transported to the shore by divers

Reporting by CHANH LAM - Translating by M.DUNG