KINGSTON, Jamaica — Liquefied natural gas provider, New Fortress Energy recently donated over 2,000 locally grown ornamental and fruit trees to the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), as well as to households and local farmers in the Port and Refinery Council communities in Hayes, Clarendon.

The company said the donation is part of its continued support for the Government of Jamaica’s National Tree Planting Programme.

In addition to the donation of seedlings, the LNG provider also donated US$3,000 to the PSOJ to assist with its marketing and promotions efforts around the programme.

”Since the announcement of the National Tree Planting Programme in 2019, the PSOJ has pledged to leverage its networking platform and marketing efforts to facilitate the planting of 500,000 trees by private sector entities,” the company said in a statement today.

Endorsing the initiative, Minister of Housing, Urban Renewal, Environment and Climate Change, Pearnel Charles Jr said “Climate change and the importance of protecting and preserving our environment is not only important, but also urgent. And so, we commend both New Fortress Energy and the PSOJ for their leadership and support of this urgent national cause. We look forward to more partnerships like these as we work together to achieve our goal.”

Vice President of the PSOJ with oversight for Environment and Climate Change, Mariame McIntosh Robinson, said: “We recognise that as a small island state, environmental sustainability will be critical for our long-term growth and as such, we were pleased to respond to the OPM to partner on planting up to 500,000 trees over the next 3 years.”

”We are very happy to receive this level of support from one of our members, New Fortress Energy, and look forward to other firms’ participation given strong interest. Environmental sustainability is everyone’s responsibility, not only that of the Government or private sector. It will take the effort of every Jamaican citizen to care and protect our country from the harmful effects of climate change,” she said.

 The company said of the over 2,000 trees that are being donated, 1,500 will be allocated to the PSOJ, while the remaining seedlings are being distributed to households and local farmers in the Port and Refinery Council communities in Hayes, Clarendon, where the company operates its co-generation heat and power plant.

”Residents will not only benefit from the beauty and aesthetics of the trees; they will also be able to earn an income from sale from the fruit trees. Some of these include ackee, starfruit, guava, rose apple, moringa while ornamental trees include willow, lignum vitae, Cupressus plus variations of poui and several others,” the statement noted.

“On behalf of New Fortress Energy, we commend the Government of Jamaica for this very important initiative and the PSOJ for leading the charge among the private sector. Our Chairman and Founder started NFE with a vision of zero carbon emissions by 2030 and LNG has provided a pathway for Jamaica to be a leader on this global priority. We’re already seeing a positive impact with the reduction of carbon emissions by 30 per cent per year, which is equivalent to planting four million trees. We are therefore delighted to support the Government and the PSOJ on this national agenda of planting trees to help mitigate the harmful effects of climate change,” said Verona Carter, Vice President, New Fortress Energy.                                                               

“Planting trees provides various important benefits in helping to create sustainable communities, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, cleans the air we breathe and helps prevent soil erosion, among many other benefits and so we are very proud to be involved,” Carter added.