Environment

Renewable Energy Skills Council On The Cards

A Renewable Energy Sector Skills Council is coming says Minister of Labour, Social Security and Third Sector, Colin Jordan.

This was disclosed last Friday by Minister Jordan as he delivered remarks at the closing ceremony of the National Symposium on Just Transition and Job Creation in the Green and Blue Economy, at Hilton Barbados, Needhams Point, St. Michael.

Reiterating Government’s commitment to making the outcomes of the symposium a reality, he said: “We will be in our own Ministry, working on the activation of a National Skills Council, a Renewable Energy Sector Skills Council. Skills councils are used all over the world as a mechanism to bring the public, well all the sectors together, public, private and third sector, so that we can work collaboratively in order to make sure that as a country, we are positioned to take advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead of us. And so, we’ve engaged many of our stakeholders.”

Mr. Jordan also disclosed that the next step would be to take to Cabinet the paper that will give his Ministry official approval to set up the Renewable Energy Sector Skills Council.

Noting when this is done, the work would be started, the Minister said: “All that we do is tripartite; the Social Partners are here; the Social Partners will be integral to that Skills Council, and we will use that as one of the tangible next steps to make real this Just Transition that we’ve spent so much time talking about.”

Local, regional, and international partners further heard that the Labour Ministry would be placing emphasis on the necessary research and analysis to ensure there is progress, in terms of the next steps.

Mr. Jordan also acknowledged the contributions of the Inter-American Development Bank, the CARICOM Secretariat, the UNDP, the United Nations Environmental Program and the Governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, and Mauritius.

And, he remarked: “That approach, that amalgam of stakeholders says to us very clearly that even at the local level, we are addressing a global challenge.” (PR/GIS)

Environment

Ministers Discuss Environmental Challenges

Collaborative approaches to address environmental challenges were recently discussed by Barbados’ Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, Green and Blue Economy, Adrian Forde, and other regional Ministers of Environment.

The Ministers participated in the United Nations Special Session of the Forum of Ministers of Environment and the One Planet Network Forum, which were both held in Brazil.

Mr. Forde highlighted the regional SOILCARE project, as an effective example of the ways under which synergies in the region could be achieved, and he served as moderator for one of the ‘Deep Dive’ sessions, which examined priorities to address land degradation in the region.

The Minister also addressed the need for ecosystem restoration and protection, noting that “threats to ecosystems are exacerbated by the vagaries of climate change and land degradation”.

In addition, he emphasised “the importance of protecting genetic resources, their associated intellectual property, and the inclusion of vulnerable people in the fight against environmental degeneration”.

Sustaining the circular economy, as a model of consumption and production, was the focal point of discussion at the One Planet Network Forum.(PR/GIS)

Environment

Commendable Prizes For First Home Garden Competition Winners

Three winners emerged victorious in the first ever Home Garden Competition held by the Ministry of the Environment and National Beautification, Green and Blue Economy.

The garden enthusiasts recently walked away with hefty prizes for their hard work, following the prize-giving ceremony at the National Botanical Gardens, Waterford, St. Michael.

WINNERS

They were first place winner Greta Collymore from St. Philip, who received the grand prize of $6,500; second place winner, Margaret Headley from St. Peter, who won $4,500, while third place winner, Colleen Hall-Crawford from St. John, took home $3,500.

The trio received trophies along with their monetary wins.

The brainchild of the Ministry, the competition was acclaimed by Minister Adrian Forde as underscoring the significance of green initiatives, in enhancing Barbados’ beauty and elevating environmental health.

“The Ministry is pushing for all these beautification efforts. We have also started to clean up our gullies. You’ve heard about the tree planting drive where we have planted over 500,000 trees since the Prime Minister made the announcement. All these things we are doing collectively as a government and as a caring society,” said Minister Forde.

CREATIVITY ABOUNDED

Meanwhile, National Tree Planting Coordinator, Dewyn Phillips, spoke of the imaginative creations seen in the gardens of the participants. “Some had terracing designs. Some had semi circles. Some had triangular designs. Some had the map of Barbados in the hedge. Some had a display of what looked like a dinosaur, with the hedging of their designs.

They were imaginative and they were creative. You’ll be pleased to know that these gardens had no diseases at all. That showed as an example of the care that they received from the competitors,” stressed Mr. Phillips.

Judging criteria for the Home Garden Competition included Visibility and Appeal; Design and Arrangement; Free of Weeds and Decay; Healthy Growth of Plants/Disease Free and Variety of Flowering Plants. (PR/GIS)

CAPTION: Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, Green and Blue Economy, Adrian Forde, presenting an award to first place winner of the first ever Home Garden Competition, Greta Collymore of St.Philip

Environment

Barbados Moving To Reduce Effect Of Plastics On Environment

Barbados is moving full steam ahead to drastically reduce the effect of plastics on the environment, over the next 10 years, through the National Action Plan to End Plastics Pollution, which was launched yesterday at Warrens Tower II.

Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, Green and Blue Economy, Adrian Forde, who addressed the launch, gave the assurance that legislation on single-use, petrol based plastics was coming.

He disclosed that approximately “500 tons of single-use plastics are sold every month, and they are distributed not only into our landfills but, unfortunately, across the length and breadth of our country”.

The National Action Plan to End Plastics Pollution incorporates five key policy interventions, which are considered to have maximum impact in the fight against plastics pollution.

These key strategies involve the phasing out of single-use plastic bottles, by integrating the installation of water refill points; gradually eliminating single-use plastic bags; and the removal of other single-use plastic items, such as takeaway food containers, straws, and lids.

They also include the implementation of ‘Extended Producer Responsibility’, which will drive source separation when national recycling is started, and the use of downstream measures, such as enhanced on-the-go and bulk waste collections, together with improved enforcement against illegal dumping and littering.

In the environmental, health battle against plastics, Minister Forde also encouraged “a sense of ownership of our country to ensure that we do the right thing for other generations to come”. (PR/GIS)

Caption: Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, Adrian Forde, and Executive Director of Common Seas, Dr. Charlotte Davies looking over the National Action Plan to End Plastics Pollution, during its launch at Warrens Tower II while Permanent Secretary, Ministry Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, Yolande Howard and Waste Management Coordinator Project Management Coordination Unit, Thora Lorde, look on