Around 4,000 pounds of waste was removed from the Port of Spain foreshore over the weekend.
On Saturday, approximately 240 volunteers gathered for the 2026 International Coastal Cleanup, the world’s largest volunteer coastal cleanup effort.
Their mammoth haul included 1,200 pounds of plastic, 130 pounds of glass and 2,600 pounds of miscellaneous waste, including tyres, metals and other discarded materials.
The Foreshore cleanup was site managed by the Ministry of Planning, the EMA and the Institute of Marine Affairs.
The EMA says the initiative highlighted the need for greater awareness and responsible waste management practices to prevent waste from reaching beaches, drains and waterways in the first place, and awareness of the impacts on human well-being and the environment.
Planning Minister Dr. Kennedy Swaratsingh is calling on the public to make responsible choices every day – avoid littering, reduce the use of single-use plastics, choose reusable bags and properly dispose of garbage.
He reminds that while a single piece of waste may seem small, when multiplied across our communities, it will have a significant impact on our beaches, rivers, drains and coastal environment.
Meanwhile, the EMA’s Managing Director and CEO, Dr. Joth Singh, says the Authority is undertaking a new Environmental Literacy Survey to assess the public’s knowledge, attitudes and practices towards the environment.
As the last survey was conducted in 2016, the new survey is expected to provide an important measure of how environmental awareness and behaviour have evolved over the past decade.
Most importantly, it will help determine whether awareness is translating into action and also will inform the interventions needed to encourage more responsible environmental practices.
