Repair the Sea’s First Pre-Passover Waterfront Cleanup is a Success

Repair the Sea – Tikkun HaYam held its first “Bedikat HaMayim” pre-Pesach waterfront cleanup. This program is an extension of Repair the Sea’s annual Reverse Tashlich. The concept behind Bedikat HaMayim is pretty simple: 3,300 years ago, the Sea saved our ancestors when they were escaping slavery in Egypt. Isn’t it about time we returned the favor?  The degradation of the ocean and the aquatic environment represents one of, if not the greatest existential threat to our planet. Just as we remove Chametz from our homes in preparation for Pesach, Bedikat HaMayim is a program designed to remove “negativity” from the water, in the form of plastic and other marine debris. 

Volunteers clean the water in New Zealand.

This was Repair the Sea’s first effort at a pre-Pesach cleanup, so we were happy that 45 teams registered to participate in nine countries. In New Zealand, Beth Shalom Congregation in Auckland was joined by the Auckland Interfaith Council. Over 70 Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists came together for a waterfront cleanup. In Uganda, the Jewish Community of Mukono performed a waterfront cleanup at the Mouth of the Nile River near Lake Victoria in honor of Miriam, the sister of Moses, who saved him when he was a baby set adrift on the water of the Nile. Beth HaRachman Jewish Community removed debris from the Ibeno Atlantic Ocean beach at Akwa Ibom in Southern Nigeria. We thank all the communities that participated in our first Bedikat HaMayim Waterfront Cleanup.