Anse Royale's YAT members in action during Sunday's activity

The adoption of environmental zones by organisations has assumed a completely new and wider dimension than mere cleaning up.

Members of participating groups are benefiting from formal learning that is giving them indepth and scientific understanding of various dynamics at play in the zones they seek to protect.

Environment Minister Ronny Jumeau said on Sunday September 21,  at Anse Royale where the local Youth Action Team (YAT) officially adopted the beach between Fairyland and Anse Royale School.

Minister Jumeau told Nation that YAT was in fact the second such group to adopt an area, the first one being Lasosiasyon Animasyon Anse Royale (LAA) who had taken up responsibility for all wetlands in that area.

In the case of YAT, the Minister said that in addition to the type of cleaning up that he personally spearheaded on Sunday, the activity would then evolve into a comprehensive beach management programme.

"After this activity they will get together with the coastal zone unit of the Ministry of Environment and draft a management plan for the whole beach area," the minister said.

He said the team members would then take part in workshops facilitated but not funded by the ministry, as had LAA members.

"After this a workshop will be held during which the youths will learn what a beach is, why we have sand dunes and why is it important not to clear away natural vegetation," he said, adding that YAT would later install barriers to prevent vehicles from driving over the sand dunes.

He said the ministry was using the two groups and their adoption of environmental zones as pilot projects, noting that the idea of adopting areas was spreading well.

"The residents of a housing estate on Praslin have adopted an area there," he said, giving other examples on Praslin, La Digue and Mahe.

He said the concept of adoption was not something to be taken loosely.

"It involves a management plan, workshops and education," he said, adding that the participants became wardens who would patrol the beaches and alert the ministry if they encountered serious problems they could not deal with, such as erosion.

He said his ministry was providing technical advice, noting that the private sector was coming up in support of the environment programmes. He made special mention of Seychelles Breweries Limited whose Le Roche factory closed on Friday September 19, to allow its workers to take part in the Clean Up the World activities.

YAT national chairperson, Mr Marc Uzice, agreed with the minister that once participants took responsibility for an area, they acquired a sense of ownership and were bound to protect the area from pollution, for example.

He also expressed appreciation for the role played by the private sector, saying that for Sunday's activity which saw up to 90 participants, the telecommunication company, AirTel, had for example contributed 24 crates of drinks for the participants.

Both Messrs Jumeau and Uzice acknowledged that all sectors of the community had responded positively in support of Sunday's activity, noting that there had been church announcements on the exercise during three previous weekends, and that representatives of most organisations in the district, including staff of the local health centre took part in the exercise.

Among those present were the area's Member of the National Assembly, Mr Barry Faure and the principal secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Mr Maurice Loustau-Lalanne, who were the first to pick up their gunny bags when Miss Rose May Benoit rang the bell for the activity to commence.

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