The Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development says 3,702.51 pounds of trash was collected from the coastline of the Foreshore along the Audrey Jeffers Highway in Port of Spain on Saturday, September 20th, as part of the International Coastal Clean-up exercise.
This site, captained by the Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development through its Environmental Policy and Planning Division, partnering with the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) and the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA), was part of 30 sites in Trinidad and Tobago, 29 on shore and one underwater, nationally coordinated by the Caribbean Network for Integrated Rural Development (CNIRD).
Two hundred and thirty four (234) volunteers comprising staff, diplomats and teams of organisations flooded the Foreshore along the Audrey Jeffers Highway in Port of Spain for International Coastal Clean-up 2025. This clean-up along the Foreshore is part of the global event taking place on the third Saturday of September every year.
This year’s waste count consisted of:
Plastic – 985.91 pounds
Glass – 111.82 pounds
Miscellaneous items (appliances, electronics, tyres etc.) – 2, 604.78 pounds
The aim of this activity is to bring to national attention the pressing environmental issue of marine pollution due to anthropogenic activity, while collecting data on the issue. Land-based sources account for 80% of marine pollution, with the remaining 20% is from ocean-based sources. Marine pollution threatens human health, wildlife, economies, livelihoods as well as communities and economies and its transboundary nature also results in global impacts.
At the local level, Planning, Economic Affairs and Development Minister Kennedy Swaratsingh, who also has responsibility for the environment, lamented on the state of litter found along the coastline and spoke of the goal to deal with the issue at the national level by reviewing Trinidad and Tobago’s waste management system and our waste collection and disposal practices. Minister Swaratsingh also indicated that attention is being given to tackling the landfill at Forres Park and the dump located along the Beetham Highway, as well as the manner in which households deal with waste materials. The Minister spoke of the possibility where organic, plastic and general waste items can be collected and disposed of separately as an example of a system for consideration to enhance our waste management practices in Trinidad and Tobago.
The International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) is the world’s largest volunteer effort to remove millions of pounds of discarded material and debris from oceans and waterways which arrive there from anthropogenic malpractices like littering. An integral component of the clean-up activities is data collection which is recorded on standardized data sheets issued globally. This information collected on waste generated in waterways is used to inform policy makers, researchers and the public and to provide tangible evidence on the need for us to alter our behaviour and implement long-lasting, resounding solutions.
The clean-up efforts have worked towards increasing the resilience of oceans and rivers, restoring their aesthetics and environmental integrity, while also protecting marine life and the wellbeing of humans and ecosystems from materials that compromise their health and endanger their lives. Clean watercourses are also important for sustaining livelihoods, recreational use, revenue generation and tourism, as well as for facilitating transportation and circumventing steep costs for waste removal operations.
A snapshot of the volunteers from the day’s International Coastal Clean-up event collecting and recording data on trash from the shoreline.
Volunteers, with help of staff from the Environmental Policy and Planning Division, weigh trash collected from the Foreshore in bags for plastic, glass and general trash.