JPS Volunteers Plant 3,000 Trees along Highway 2000

The following is a release from the JPS:

(Kingston July 18, 2023)   JPS Volunteers recently planted 3,000 trees along the Hartlands stretch of Highway 2000, as their contribution to a Plant-a-thon which was hosted by the Forestry Department.  The event was part of the National Tree Planting Initiative, which aims to support Prime Minister Andrew Holness’ Three Million Trees Initiative.   

Eighty-eight JPS VOLTS, (Volunteers On Location To Serve) planted forest and fruit trees along the 5-hectare stretch, alongside other volunteers, including some from the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) and members of the community.    

“The trees included ackee, neem, cedar, and apple,” informed a pleased Azalee Lawson, Manager of Environmental Affairs at JPS.  “This is something we believe in very passionately, and we want to encourage other corporate entities to get on board,” she added.   

Georgette Bolton-Smith, Manager of Programmes, Policy and Research at the PSOJ also shared about the activity’s importance to the group. “[The impact of Climate Change] is not only economical but it is social as well, as it has an impact on our schools, our soft spaces, our drinking water and our ability to live and exist as human beings.” She went on to underscore that the PSOJ is also encouraging other entities and persons to become a part of the initiative, to plant trees and help mitigate the impact of climate change.   

JPS has been supporting the natural environment for over 25 years, with the Company being engaged in tree-planting activities at several locations island-wide.  JPS has also been a participant in the Corporate Adopt-a-Hillside initiative, which has seen the organization supporting the planting of 16 hectares of trees.    

JPS Transmission & Distribution Engineer, Liveen Harris (left) and Director of Corporate Communications, Winsome Callum, sort out some of the young trees which were planted during the Plant-A-Thon, held along the Hartlands stretch of Highway 2000.  The National Tree Planting Initiative saw 88 JPS VOLTS (Volunteers On Location To Serve)  helping to plant 3,000 trees in the area.

JPS General Legal Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Melanie Gilchrist gets busy planting a young tree along Highway 2000, as part of a recent Plant-A-Thon staged by the Forestry Department.  88 JPS Volunteers (VOLTS), as well as representatives of the PSOJ and members of the community, came out to help with the reforestation efforts.

Several JPS VOLTS (Volunteers On Location To Serve) were busy planting fruit and other trees during the Plant-A-Thon held, courtesy of the National Tree Planting Initiative along the Hartland 5-hectare stretch beside Highway 2000.  Almost 90 JPS volunteers, as well as members of the PSOJ and community members, planted trees including ackee, neem, cedar, and apple, as part of the reforestation efforts.

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