Petrojam joins Kingston Harbour clean-up project with milestone agreement

/ Our Today

administrator

Reading Time: 2 minutes

General Manager of Petrojam Telroy Morgan (seated, third right), signs a memorandum
of understanding (MOU) with The Ocean Cleanup team members (seated, from left): Project Manager
(Rivers) Ryan du Plessis; Business Development Manager Dominik Härtl; (standing, from left)
Operations Manager Stephanie Ritchie; and Junior Project Engineer Grégoire Simon. Also
present (seated, from right) are: CEO of GraceKennedy Foundation Caroline Mahfood; Director
of Operations at Clean Harbours Jamaica Dieno Campbell; (standing from right) Managing
Director of Clean Harbours Jamaica, Michael McCarthy; and PSM and environmental
coordinator at Petrojam, Nicole Smith.

The state-owned oil refinery Petrojam and the Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project (KHCP) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to allow the KHCP to deploy and maintain waste-trapping technology at Shoemaker Gully.

This venture, which the GraceKennedy Foundation also facilitated as the local project lead with partners Clean Harbours Jamaica Limited and The Ocean Cleanup, marks a pivotal step towards the long-term objective of reducing the pollution of Kingston Harbour. Shoemaker Gully, which runs through Petrojam’s property, is one of the 11 worst-polluted gullies that feed into the Kingston Harbour.

“Petrojam Limited is proud to contribute to the Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project. We believe
that through this collaboration, we can play a small part in creating a lasting impact on the
the environmental health of the harbour and, by extension, supporting the broader goals of the
the revitalisation of Downtown Kingston,” stated Telroy Morgan, general manager of Petrojam.

Photo Source: https://www.cleankingstonharbour.org/cleanup-sesions/april-1-2023-cleanup-shoemaker-gully

Since its start-up in 2022, the KHCP has successfully deployed waste-trapping technology at seven of the 11 worst-polluted gullies in the harbour. This innovative approach has proven effective, preventing over 1.5 million kilogrammes of waste from entering the harbour as of December 2023. Installation at Shoemaker Gully marked the completion of the project’s first phase to reduce plastic pollution in Kingston Harbour, while the next phase will focus on the Hunts Bay area.

“We are thrilled to formalise this relationship with Petrojam Limited, as it marks a significant
stride towards realising our vision for a cleaner and healthier Kingston Harbour,” added Michael McCarthy, managing director of Clean Harbours Jamaica Limited, local operators of
the KHCP.

Ongoing outreach activities, which target a wide range of stakeholders, are an integral
component of the KHCP and aim to raise awareness about the harbour’s challenges.

Caroline Mahfood, CEO of the GraceKennedy Foundation, said: “The project’s success thus far stems from the robust support and dedication of both the private and public sectors, enabling us to progress swiftly. We aspire for more entities to emulate Petrojam’s involvement and join our initiative to curtail waste influx into the harbour. The project’s tangible impact underscores the significance of unified efforts to tackle this urgent national concern.”