Big clean-up at Balandra, Salybia

At Balandra, Digicel and a team of approximately 80 volunteers from UWI and the Rotarck Club of Piarco came early in maxis and cars to begin their task which took approximately five hours.

Anjaana Downes, marketing assistant at Digicel, was at Balandra getting her hands dirty and aiding in the clean-up.

Speaking to Newsday, Downes explained her company’s participation in the clean-up.

“This is the second year we’re doing the coastal clean-up. We did it on the East Coast last year where we did Salybia but this year we decided to come to Balandra. It’s basically our way of helping the environment and ensuring it is clean because it is a place people come to relax and take their families. We just came to make sure we clean it up and even though it might not stay clean, we have done our part and we’re proud of what we did,” she said.

Downes revealed that it was not difficult to attract volunteers as they were all keen to be part of the project.

“Everybody was very excited. We did say there was a prize for people with the most garbage but I didn’t need to tell them that because everyone wanted to come and do their part. We’re actually very proud of what we did today. It was a good effort and I want to thank everyone for coming out,” she stated. The Digicel representative also had some words of advice for future beachgoers who may be tempted to litter.

“I just want to tell them to have some respect because this is your country, it is where you live and take your family. I don’t think you would want your family dealing with a dirty beach so just remember that and don’t dump garbage on the beach. Keep the beach clean because you would like it to be clean when you come,” she said.

Also present was the councillor for Toco/Fishing Pond, Terry Rondon, who offered his support for the efforts at Balandra and Salybia. He hailed the efforts of Digicel and the volunteers at Balandra as well as TTEC and the COSTAAT Trekkers who handled the clean-up at Salybia.

“People can say what they want but there are still a lot of good people in Trinidad. I want to thank them for coming here to clean the beaches because we at the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation don’t have the resources to do the job. I want to urge people to keep the beaches clean and use the bins because it is unfair for others to have to come to clean up behind them,” he said.

Comments

"Big clean-up at Balandra, Salybia"

More in this section