WHEN MOST PEOPLE were in their beds yesterday morning, three men set out on an “awareness mission”.
Instead of getting into his car, Kammie Holder jumped onto his bicycle and in the company of Michael Bellamy and Jamar Pilgrim, the trio mounted their bikes from Ocean City Park, St Philip, bound for Bridgetown.
The initiative was part of their efforts to raise awareness for World Environment Day celebrated around the world yesterday.
Spearheaded by Holder, an advocate for the Future Centre Trust, who rode the entire way in a pinstriped blue suit, they travelled with their mouths and noses covered with air masks, while displaying bottles of garbage as well as placards with the number 350 (the number associated with climate safety).
“We are seeking to create awareness of littering, global warming as well as air pollution.
“This is why the riders are wearing masks, riding with a container of garbage and why I am wearing a suit, to explain to people the heat which global warming brings,” Holder told the WEEKEND NATION during a stop at the Henry Forde Roundabout.
“This is all about awareness. Very few people understand that there is a correlation between littering and vector ailments such as chikungunya fever and malaria.”
He noted that during his ride he realised most of the litter on the highway was coming from vehicles and not from pedestrians.
Holder also pointed to a decrease in the quality of air which he said has led to an increase in asthmatics and upper respiratory tract infections.
“We currently have no constant monitoring of air quality in Barbados and I am thinking that as a developing society, we need to have constant air quality monitoring,” he said. (RB)
