Renewed Collaboration Aims to Mobilise 400 Volunteers and Reinforce National Commitment to
Environmental Stewardship, Under the 2025 Theme – ‘Sea the Change’.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, September 12, 2025 – On Sunday, September 21, 2025, the
Urban Development Corporation (UDC) will partner with the National Environment and Planning
Agency (NEPA) to host a major beach cleanup at the UDC-owned Hellshire Bay Beach. The event
is a key component of Jamaica’s participation in International Coastal Clean-up (ICC) Day 2025.
The agencies’ 2nd staging of a 2-day clean-up is envisaged to serve as a powerful demonstration of
our continued inter-agency collaborations, towards the safeguarding of Jamaica’s coastal resources.
Building on an ICC Day partnership that is more than a decade old, the two government
entities are mobilising resources and volunteers to address the pervasive issue of solid waste
proliferation along the nation’s coastlines. The cleanup will bring together approximately 400
participants, including members of the Hellshire community, students from schools in the Kingston
and St. Catherine areas, and UDC and NEPA staff.
“The UDC is a custodian of some of Jamaica’s most valuable coastal properties, and with
-end-
that comes an immense responsibility to ensure their protection,” Sara Simpson, Director of
Natural Resource Management and Environment Planning at the UDC. “Our renewed partnership
with NEPA for this year’s International Coastal Cleanup Day is a visible symbol of our
commitment to sustainable development. By offering our property at Hellshire Bay as a clean-up
site and encouraging public participation, we are not simply ‘cleaning a beach’; we are investing in
a healthier environment and a more environmentally conscious public.”
The event’s objectives extend beyond the physical removal of debris. Volunteers will
participate in data collection for submission to Ocean Conservancy, contributing to a global
understanding of marine litter. The initiative is also designed to be a significant public education
platform, encouraging the wider public to adopt the principles of the 3-R’s: Reduce, Reuse, and
Recycle, in hopes that as a nation, we may ‘Sea the Change’
The Hellshire Bay Beach cleanup will take place from 7 am to 11 am. Participants are
encouraged to wear appropriate clothing and bring re-useable water bottles. All necessary cleanup
equipment, including gloves and collection bags, will be provided on-site. Similar cleanup
activities will take place at the Shipwreck Beach in Palisadoes along the Port Royal main road
close to another UDC ‘planning and development zone’
.
About the Urban Development Corporation (UDC): The Urban Development Corporation is the
Government of Jamaica’s primary urban and rural development agency. The UDC’s mandate is to
drive sustainable urban and rural development through land management, strategic partnerships,
and infrastructure projects that enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life for all
Jamaicans.
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