International Coastal Clean-up 2016...Coming soon!

On September 17 2016, be part of the global movement against marine debris.

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ICC 2015!

Annually, the 3rd Saturday in September, volunteers around the world remove millions of pounds of discarded material and debris from oceans and waterways as part of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). Trinidad is no exception as on September 19th, 2015 volunteers rendered their time and efforts for ICC, 2015.

 

The Ministry of Planning and Development is the major sponsor of the local chapter of the ICC. Thus, the Environmental Policy and Planning Division (EPPD) of the Ministry continued its involvement with the cleanup and data collection exercise hosted by the Ocean Conservancy by assisting in the cleanup of the Chagville Beach in Chaguaramas. Chagville Beach was one of the 17 beaches that was cleaned across the country in this exercise. 

 

Staff of the EPPD joined Plastikeep and other volunteers and concerned citizens of Trinidad and Tobago in ICC 2015 cleanup efforts. Within their groups of 4, participants enthusiastically collected plastic and glass bottles, food wrappers, bottle caps, tyres, dead animal carcasses and other debris both natural and anthropogenic. By the end of the cleanup exercise several bags of debris were collected.

 

This initiative provides substantive evidence of the need for us to heighten our environmental awareness and alter our behaviour, in the hope that in the future less debris will be collected from our coastal sites.

 

Snapshots of from ICC 2015

IDB Beach Clean-up

On Friday 24 May. 2013 the staff members of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Country Office and the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) partnered together on the IDB's Day of Volunteerism to clean-up the Grand Riviere Beach, one of the nesting sites for leatherback turtles on Trinidad's North coast.

Source: http://www.turtlevillagetrust.org/turtle-watching.htm

The MEWR was represented by members of the EPPD, Green Fund Executing Unit, Drainage Division, Forestry Division as well as its agencies the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) and the Water and Sewage Authority (WASA). Students from the Grand  Riviere A.C. Primary School were also present to participate in this important exercise that reinforced the non-governmental and governmental co-management approach to improving the state of the environment.

The day’s activity proved to be very fulfilling to all who participated. Though we were in one of the country’s most pristine and beautiful areas, we were all cognisant in knowing that we assisted in maintaining the accessibility of the leatherback turtle to the beach to lay their eggs.  In addition, we helped a community that generates a large portion of their livelihoods from the turtles presence on the beach.