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The Government has pledged its support on the issues of climate change, with the aim of sending an urgent message that climate change is a serious concern to the country’s sustainable development. Speaking at a symposium for climate change, held at the University of the West Indies Law Faculty, on April 4, Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change,...

Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Robert Pickersgill says the Government has nothing to hide and is not involved in a cover-up regarding the recent fires at the Riverton landfill. Speaking at a meeting with members of the Jamaica Civil Society Coalition and the Jamaica Environment Trust on a number of issues surrounding the fire at the...

A total of 215 hectares (531 acres) of watershed areas have been replanted utilising 113,914 seedlings, under the Local Forest Management Committee (LFMC) project. The initiative aims to involve communities in co-managing forested areas, while building their resilience to the risks that come with natural hazards. Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister, Hon. Luther Buchanan, speaking at...

The capacity of National Water Commission (NWC) to provide efficient service to Jamaicans has been boosted, through $128.7 million (US$1.48 million) in funding from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Robert Pickersgill, signed the grant agreement on March 28 at his Dominica Drive office in Kingston. Of the total allocation, US$1.18 million...

Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Robert Pickersgill, has said that an informed and responsive citizenry is critical to addressing issues related to climate change and the appropriate adaptive measures to be taken. “It is knowledge, having accurate and relevant information, that will help us address the enormous challenges of climate change. I firmly believe that stakeholder...

Improving agricultural practices to get “more crop per drop” will be Jamaica’s main focus on World Water Day, which will be observed on Thursday (March 22). Based on the international theme: ‘Water and Food Security… the World is Hungry because it’s Thirsty’, the Water Resources Authority (WRA) will this year, examine a number of strategies to boost the water supply...

Director General of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Ronald Jackson, says countries in the region can help with building each other’s disaster management capabilities. “More and more, we are recognising that we can share the capacities within our various member states towards the development of each other,” Mr. Jackson said, as he addressed the closing ceremony...

A three-day workshop organised by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), which began on March 14 in Kingston, is expected to significantly upgrade the preparedness of personnel involved in disaster management in several Caribbean Countries. The workshop, which is being supported by funding from the Caribbean Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), will examine and iron out...

The rehabilitated Negril Wastewater Treatment Ponds, in Westmoreland, were commissioned Wednesday March 14, by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller. The rehabilitation work was funded by Jamaica and the European Union (EU), at a cost of approximately $278 million. Original construction of the facility was completed in 1999, to serve Negril and its surrounding communities. The upgrade has...

The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) is offering its extensive knowledge and experience in disaster risk management to other countries in the region. Director General of ODPEM, Ronald Jackson, told JIS News that talks are underway to share Jamaica’s human resource capabilities with at least one other member state of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Authority (CDEMA)....

Permanent secretaries, national disaster directors and coordinators from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Authority’s (CDEMA) North-West region, are in the island for a week of activities aimed at coming up with a comprehensive disaster response strategy. The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), as focal point for the North-West sub-region, is hosting the week, which got underway on...

In response to an invitation from the Government of Jamaica, the Living Oceans Foundation will shortly begin coral reef surveys off the Pedro Banks of the island’s South coast. The primary scientific goals of the expedition are to characterise the coral reef ecosystems; identify their current status and major threats; and examine factors that enhance their resistance to, and recovery...