The Environmental Protection Agency in Guyana stands firm in its commitment to environmental sustainability as more than 1 billion people in 192 countries take part in the largest civic-focused day of action in the world, rallying the call to ‘Protect Our Species”. Earth Day, first celebrated in 1970 and celebrated annually on April 22, challenges us to consider the impacts of human activities such as deforestation, habitat loss, trafficking and poaching, unsustainable agriculture, pollution and pesticides on plant and wildlife populations. Data continues to show that many populations are on the decline, facing extinction or are already extinct.
Some are engaging policymakers, some marching and signing petitions, others planting trees and cleaning up their communities. This year, the EPA is celebrating expanding its services in the Region 6 area to support the public in environmental management and compliance. This ultimately contributes to the conservation of the environment and all species, especially those that are endangered and threatened.
A new office for Region 6
In light of recent marked changes in Guyana’s economic landscape, the Environmental Protection Agency has responded promptly to the need for decentralised services to increase efficiency and effectiveness in tackling pollution control and environmental management across the country. Since its establishment, the EPA has been operating from within the city of Georgetown. This single location meant that the suite of officers and other resources had to be mobilised to serve customers all over the country. Though there were several notable achievements, in spite of the obvious pressures, the need for expansion has been on the radar for some time.
We are pleased to inform the public that, construction and staffing of our extension office at Whim Village, East Berbice – Corentyne is now complete. This milestone achievement signals EPA’s commitment to its mandate to oversee the sustainable use of Guyana’s environmental resources. This physical expansion will directly support the compliance of business operations in the wider Berbice area, allowing face to face support during the Environmental Authorisations process, timely monitoring inspections, investigation of complaints, and emergency response.
The Berbice Office will be Officially opened on April 25, 2019, and customers visiting our Region 6 location can access the following services from May 06, 2019:
Receive guidance on the Environmental Authorisation process;
Lodge applications and documents for Environmental Authorisations including Noise permits;
File complaints of environmental breaches;
Request environmental education and awareness material
…and much more
You can also make contact via telephone on 337-2201. Additionally, you can continue to make contact with our main office via email, our website, and our social media pages. This Agency is also making strides to have a sustained presence in all ten Administrative Regions.
This Earth Day you can help to raise awareness on the need for us to be mindful of our day to day actions to protect all our species. Dedicate your social media feeds, notice boards, and news outlets to this global campaign, or plan your own event to raise community awareness about the accelerating rate of extinction of millions of species. Keep looking out for public events happening all across the country.
Join the single-use plastics free day on April 22. Refuse plastics bags and take your own reusable bag when shopping. Remember the change begins with you! Let help to protect out species by saying NOOOOO!!! to single-use plastics.
