THE Palisadoes strip smiled again on September 15 when over 200 volunteers gave their time and energy to clean up the coastline that connects the city to the Norman Manley International Airport.

The event which was organised by the Jamaica Environment Trust marked International Coastal Clean-up Day which is observed in over 70 countries across the world. Volunteers who came from across the Corporate Area included students from 25 schools and tertiary institutions, 12 business houses and service clubs.

The volunteers who were divided in teams, collected plastic bottles, caps and lids, food wrappers, glass, tyres, metal, wood and cloth from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm. A total of 167 garbage bags were filled and were collected for disposal by the Metropolitan Parks and Markets.

Mags Fenner, press and public affairs officer at the British High Commission, said she enjoyed her first clean-up day.

“This was my first clean-up day with JET. It was actually tremendous fun and the beach did look much cleaner by the time we were ready to leave,” she said.

She added: “The British High Commission is very happy to support JET, not only financially, but by also providing people power when needed, in their efforts to clean-up and educate persons about the environment.”

Carlette Falloon, JET’s programme director, said volunteers seemed more interested in the broader subject of marine pollution than just picking up garbage.

“Students asked a number of questions and pledged to talk and act more in their schools and communities. It was really encouraging to see the many students on the strip maintaining the level of clean-up even when they were at lunch and that’s a good sign,” she said.

She was also happy with the turnout and the assistance received from private sector organisations and thanked major sponsors of the clean-up exercise, the Canada/Jamaica Green Fund and the National Environmental Societies Trust (NEST).

“JET’s wish is that this event will trigger the need for us Jamaicans to see the importance of being a part of improving our environment,” she noted.

The waste collected from last week’s activity is recorded and sent to the Ocean Conservancy Office in Washington DC, USA for their annual report on beach debris.