HUNDREDS of volunteers accompanied by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Robert Persaud gathered along the seawalls in Georgetown last Saturday to participate in International Coastal Clean-up (ICC) Day. 

Spearheading the exercise, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) spread awareness by collaborating with various schools, communities, youth groups and most importantly non-profit organisations (NGOs) to clear the coast of debris.
The activity commenced from the Pegasus Hotel and extended towards the Camp Street seawall, and was also done in Regions 2, 3, 6 and 10 from around 06:30 am with over 200 volunteers who participated alongside government officials.
The coast was cleared of debris and other unwanted substances due to the determination of the participants.
Minister Persaud highlighted the issue of marine litter around the world and particularly in Guyana since it leads to health issues in humans and wildlife as well as problematic shipping by creating navigation hazards. He underscored that plastics and Styrofoam products are prominent forms of trash in Guyana since they are usually “tossed along the seawalls by persons who were most likely at the seawalls on an outing…”
According to the Environment Minister, it is now left to citizens to ensure that Guyana’s waterways and oceans are free of trash by simply performing actions such as disposing waste in bins or “legally designated locations.”
Meanwhile, the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN) as well as Pick-it-up Guyana, among other NGOs, paved the way for other participants with their team-work by ensuring the shores are ‘trash-free.’
Meanwhile, approximately 650,000 volunteers uplifted 12.3 million pounds of garbage along coastal beaches and other surrounding channels in 92 countries as well as other locations in 2013.
International Coastal Clean-up Day culminates on the third Saturday in September each year where hundreds of volunteers from countries around the world spend a day tidying the coast as well as educating the public on marine litter and its consequences to humans as well as wildlife.

(By Shivanie Sugrim)