The Green Nation World Cleanup campaign saw loads of garbage being extracted from many of Barbados’ beaches and gullies along the southern and western coasts yesterday as part of International Coastal Cleanup Day.
This occasion is observed on the third Saturday of September annually and is aimed at cleaning beaches, coastal areas and raising awareness about pollution of the oceans.
Various associations came out early in their numbers to support the drive. At Brandons Beach in St Michael, the Barbados Save Soil group, led by Dr Madhuri Doma, was eager to take part in the drive.
‘Garbage everywhere’ “The cleanup is very educational. Usually, you feel Barbados’ beaches are very clean but when you start to look, there is so much garbage everywhere . . . tiny plastic bags, bottle caps, straws, fruit packages and we saw some pieces of metal.
“. . . Only when you see it with your eyes, you see how huge the problem is,” Doma said.
The Boy Scouts Association collected more than 230 pounds of garbage from Brandons Beach and project coordinator for A Greener Barbados Scouts for Sustainability, Carolyn Maynard, said it was a continuation of work they had been doing for a while.
“It is very important that we continue to maintain the cleaningup of the environment because it is all we have and we have to ensure that we keep it clean for ourselves and for our family and friends and just to generally maintain cleanliness, keep the water courses clean.”
She urged Barbadians who litter the beach to stop.
“It harms and it hurts all of us. You may think that you just drop your garbage there but it’s a cycle.”
Vanessa Scott is the leader of Community Service and teacher of environmental science at Codrington School and her concern was the accumulation of smaller debris in the environment.
“We are seeing a little bit of everything but I think the biggest problem is the micro plastics . . . They are not very noticeable and it is a big problem because if you don’t pick them up, the problem continues. Look for the garbage can and put your garbage there. All it takes is 20 steps, it’s easy.”
Brownes Beach, also in St Michael, was buzzing with volunteers from a few associations including the Lions Club of Bridgetown. According to past president of the Leo Club, Shamya Jordan, who has done several cleanups in the past, the volume of garbage has been steadily decreasing at that location. “Every year we are finding less and less garbage, which is a good thing, and I just want to commend
Barbadians for doing their part,” she said. Nicola Callender, the Leo advisor for the Club of Bridgetown, led the Lions’ charge. “We have about 11 from the Leo Club. Most of them are environmentalists, they are at university and secondary schools and it’s about them understanding that this environment is the only thing that we have to go by and therefore we should keep it nice and tidy.
“This is also a tourist beach and we want to make sure that our locals as well as our tourists have a good experience.”
Brand manager for Barbados Bottling Company, Shanice Brewster-Charles, was part of her company’s large contingent.
“We are just excited to be out here to give back and to make sure that we are also doing our part . . . .We’ve been partnering with the Caribbean Youth Environmental Network for the last decade or so and every single year we would pinpoint two beach cleanups where we get our staff involved.”
Participants from the Girl Guides Association were also at Brownes Beach with their commissioner for environment affairs, Thora Lorde, leading their effort.
Other South Coast beaches targeted for the 6 a.m. cleanup yesterday included Hastings Rocks and Accra Beach in Christ Church. However, when the Sunday Sun team visited those locations at that allotted time, there was no activity. (SG)
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