Ports of Jersey teams up with Harry to save the ocean
From Port of Jersey
8th November 2022
Ports of Jersey is donating two free copies of a children’s book which teaches children about sea pollution and recycling to each primary school and both libraries. ‘Harry Saves the Ocean’, written by N.G.K. and Sylvia Fae, highlights the need to care for our oceans and to avoid polluting them with plastic.
The idea to donate the books, as part of Ports of Jersey’s programme of community support, came from Ports employee, Louise Stafford, who has enjoyed reading the book to her four-year old daughter. Louise, who is Project and Environmental Manager for Maritime Operations, said the story struck a chord with her, as it provides an entertaining way to discuss environmental issues with children: “Reading stimulates the imagination and has the power to communicate and teach children in an engaging way. ‘Harry Saves the Ocean’ is fun to read but also carries an important message for our next generation to protect and respect our beaches, seas, and the wider natural world. My daughter is just four. She says it’s naughty to throw rubbish into the sea and helps to pick up litter we find on the beach.”
Ports of Jersey’s CEO, Matt Thomas, said: “Our primary role is to provide essential connectivity for Islanders, but we are very aware that the aircraft and ships we use are greenhouse gas polluters. So we are doing everything we can to minimise our impact, to decarbonise travel and to look after the seas around us.
“We are working with airlines, ferry operators, fuel suppliers and other business partners to operate as sustainably as we can, by investigating new technologies like hydrogen-powered flights, and by ensuring the routes our aircraft take in and out of the airport are as fuel-efficient as possible.
“Our coastguards visit both primary and secondary schools regularly to deliver sea-safety training, and they also arrange school visits to the harbour to raise awareness about the importance of caring for our marine environment. We want to work with other like-minded organisations to take lots of small steps today that will make all the difference tomorrow.”
Louise will be at a story time in the children’s section of the main library in St Helier to introduce young readers to ‘Harry Saves the Ocean’ on Thursday 10 November from 3-4pm.
Environmental marine initiatives
Louise is also overseeing a project to restore, and prevent further damage to, Jersey’s largest area of seagrass at St Catherine’s Bay. Seagrass is known for its blue carbon, calculated to absorb 35 times more carbon than tropical rainforests, and the project aims to prevent the damage caused by traditional moorings and anchoring. Seagrass is an important nursery habitat for many species, it provides coastal protection and helps oxygenate the ocean. It also absorbs and sinks carbon, which mitigates the impact of climate change.
