CEPEP partners with Lake Asphalt

Thousands of visitors are drawn to the mystery of the Pitch Lake

Heat rising from the black surface of the Pitch Lake distorts the image of tourists shuffling over the spongy asphalt. A modest-sized group shields themselves from the fierce sun above with parasols which offer no protection against the hot air radiated from below.

This natural phenomenon has always attracted visitors from far and wide. It is a source of pride in our citizens to boast of an incredible geological feature right here in Trinidad.

Treasuring a local, natural wonder

It’s a pride shared by The CEPEP Company Limited. Now in partnership with Lake Asphalt of Trinidad and Tobago to regularly maintain the periphery of the La Brea Pitch Lake, CEPEP crews keep the site in pristine condition for visitors flocking to this natural wonder of the world.

An estimated 20,000 people make the pilgrimage to the Pitch Lake each year to learn the fascinating history of this dynamic, ever changing environment.

A group of locals embarks on a guided tour of the Pitch Lake

CEPEP crews work their way along the perimeter, taming bush that sprouts up along the paths walked by visitors.

When groups of tourists break for lunch at the Pitch Lake Visitors’ Centre, it now overlooks a beautifully manicured site, thanks to hard working CEPEP teams.

The mystery of the lake

This expanse of heaving and belching natural asphalt has captivated man for centuries.

It was known to the Amerindians long before its ‘discovery’ by English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh in the late 1500s.

Estimated to be 250 feet deep at the centre of the 100 acre lake, this cauldron of geologic forces is believed to hold 10 million tonnes of pitch. The versatile resource is used as road surfacing material and even as protective coatings for vehicles. 

CEPEP workers keep the surroundings of the Pitch Lake clean

CEPEP pitches in to make La Brea world class

With growing global demand for cultural tourism, the La Brea Pitch Lake is one of many cultural assets that make T&T a diverse destination for any traveller.

CEPEP crews ensure that visitors to the site see only the Pitch Lake and not unruly overgrowth encroaching the area.

The CEPEP Company Limited, like the Pitch Lake, is always on the move, continuing its evolution, delivering more to the people of this country.

CEPEP and Social Responsibility

Given the community-oriented remit of The CEPEP Company Limited, it’s only natural that the organisation reaches out to those who could use a helping hand.

CEPEP does more than its fair share, pitching in to improve the lives of fellow citizens, communities and religious or non-profit organisations. It’s all part being a good corporate citizen.

Our stand-out CSR initiative is the annual CEPEP Santa programme. In the spirit of yuletide cheer, The CEPEP Company Limited, along with contractors, rolls out several projects, renovating homes, staging Christmas parties for children, gifting food hampers and carrying out community beautification projects; all of this is done in the spirit of goodwill.

The company remains committed to environmental protection and enhancement, but we are so much more. In addition to CEPEP Marine’s excellent work in cleaning up our marine habitats, the company is also a big supporter of wildlife protection and conservation.

A second chance for injured wildlife, hope for the environment
Zoi, a charming but wildly precocious red howler monkey is one of several residents at the El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation in Freeport, Central Trinidad. She’s been appointed an animal ambassador for her species, teaching children about the importance of conservation and respect for wildlife.

It’s this educational component that caught the attention of The CEPEP Company Limited. A group, which included Chairman of the board, Adesh Deonarine, visited the facility in Freeport and were impressed by what they saw. Given CEPEP’s goal of becoming the premier environmental protection company fostering national pride, it isn’t surprising that the organisation developed an affinity for the El Socorro Centre.

The CEPEP team gets a tour of the El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation

During their visit, CEPEP’s management team saw first-hand the tremendous amount of work poured into this refuge for injured and orphaned wild animals.

The centre, founded in 2009, gives many native species a second chance. Wounded birds, mammals, reptiles; they’ve all found respite here. Once nursed back to health, many will be released. Some, however, have suffered injuries so severe they can’t survive in the wild. Such animals will live out their days, well cared for by the centre.

While rehab and release are a big part of what the centre does, education is the principle objective. Groups of children regularly visit the facility and are taught the importance of wildlife.

The El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation is undertaking a "Give 'Em A Place" chair drive to provide seating for visitors, enhancing the learning experience.

This ideology resonated with CEPEP Chairman Adesh Deonarine. Recognizing the value of this work, The CEPEP Company Limited donated chairs to the El Socorro Centre to cater for children brought there to learn about local wildlife.

CEPEP Chairman Adesh Deonarine donates much needed chairs to The El Socorro Centre For Wildlife Conservation for its education drive

Partners in environmental education 
CEPEP understands the importance of environmental education. Whether it’s CEPEP Marine teams collecting refuse in the Caroni Swamp or a CEPEP crew retrieving rubbish in the Caura River; the organisation has a day-to-day appreciation of how a lack of awareness affects our most treasured wildlife habitats.

This is where CEPEP and the El Socorro Centre mesh. Educating the youth about our wildlife and the environment is an indispensable building block in the development of well-rounded individuals.

CEPEP’s support for the centre demonstrates that this NGO, committed to wildlife conservation, reflects the same values cherished by the company; environmental preservation for future generations.

CEPEP goes even further, practicing its commitment to environmental protection in its own back yard.

CEPEP pursues conservation at home
In the spirit of ‘practicing what you preach’, The CEPEP Company Limited applies the principles of conservation to a pond located at the back of the company’s head office in St. Madeleine.

The pond, once associated with the decommissioned St. Madeleine sugar factory, is regularly maintained by the CEPEP Marine unit. This work is particularly beneficial to the aquatic environment there and the numerous wildlife species it supports. In March this year, Red Nile tilapia were released into the pond. This watery sanctuary has also provided a new home for a former resident of the El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation!

An old sugar factory pond is now a thriving eco-habitat

The NGO recently released a rehabilitated caiman into the pond at CEPEP headquarters where it can live undisturbed by human activity.

Once again, the relationship between The CEPEP Company Limited and the El Socorro Centre for Wildlife Conservation has produced a happy result for wildlife.

CEPEP is proud, not only to stand behind the El Socorro Centre, but of its own efforts to contribute to environmental conservation across this country.

The Green Economy in Trinidad

Dramatically shifting weather patterns and the increased frequency of powerful storms continue to whip up debate about climate change.

For the Caribbean, the symptoms of climate change are particularly menacing. Islands in the region face the threat of sea level rise. In Trinidad and Tobago, there are few places of human habitation that aren’t flood prone. We often find ourselves at the mercy of flash floods after only 30 minutes of rain.

Even as the conversation on climate change rages on, several countries are aggressively trying to develop a ‘green economy’. In China, where there is ever-growing demand for energy to prop up a mushrooming economy and expanding consumer appetites, this emerging superpower is investing in renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. On the African continent, Uganda is spreading the gospel of organic farming, dramatically reducing harmful inputs like pesticides.

CEPEP takes on ‘greening’

Here in T&T, we are adopting our own brand of ‘greening’.

The CEPEP Company Limited has long been linked to environmental protection. It’s right there in the name - The Community-Based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme. This, however, goes far beyond a name or prevailing perceptions of what CEPEP is or does.

The concept of the green economy, as expressed through CEPEP, can be found in countless communities across Trinidad. A visit to the village of Lopinot in the northern part of the island provides a good example.

The Lopinot Valley is a good example of the green economy at work

This verdant valley is beautified further by the consistent input of CEPEP gangs trimming road verges, pushing back rebellious growth and reducing the hazards of blind corners along a very narrow road.

A battalion of green overall-ed residents descends on the river traversing this scenic community, clearing up the detritus of raucous weekend limes and riverside ‘cook ups’. On sandy river banks, countless bags of garbage are lined up, all collected by CEPEP workers for disposal.

Healthy environment, healthy revenue

Not seeing the green economy in this scenario yet? Well, Lopinot is an important tourist destination, revered not just for its riveting historical sites but the latent eco-tourism potential resident in its forests.

The sweat equity of the CEPEP worker helps to maintain the Lopinot tourism product, and, in so doing, supports the local business community.

CEPEP workers help keep the Lopinot tourism product in tip top shape

Visitors from at home and abroad, eager to sample what Lopinot has to offer, funnel critical support to small businesses in the community. They come, they frolic, buy food and drink. They may even collapse into a bed for a night or two at a guest house. It is this tourism revenue that allows residents to benefit directly from using their most precious resource, the environment, in a sustainable manner.

It is highly unlikely that visitors would find Lopinot a desirable location if they were confronted by hillocks of rubbish and rivers and streams smothered with gleefully discarded bottles.

Lopinot illustrates how CEPEP functions as an investment in development which has at its core environmental conservation. Outsiders may leave the place in a mess but CEPEP is always there to ensure that Lopinot, as an economic commodity inextricably tied to environmental preservation, will always attract fair market value.

As a small island acutely subject to increasingly capricious weather patterns attributed to global warming, we must wean ourselves off petrochemical dependency and diversify our economy. The work of The CEPEP Company Limited is an immensely important component in T&T’s march towards a green economy.   

Guardians of our Marine Spaces

Uniformly green flat-bottom boats sway lazily on the risen tide, tugging gently at their rope leashes. The brackish murk of a man-made canal laps at the bank where a gaggle of tourists is gathered.

This is the Caroni Bird Sanctuary in Trinidad, perhaps the best known eco-tourism destination in the country. It is also home to the national bird, the scarlet ibis.It’s why these visitors are here, fussing with cameras and backpacks, enveloping themselves in a fog of insect repellent before gingerly boarding open-air boats which will ferry them down a green corridor into the unknown.

The flotilla motors slowly into the swamp, the guides keep a sharp eye out for anything of interest.

“If you look to your left you will see something tangled in that tree. We call it a cascabel. It is a tree dwelling snake.” Just as the guide directs the attention of the excited boat passengers to the coiled snake, a flock of scarlet ibis flies over a gap in the mangrove growth.

Scarlet Ibis returning to roost in the Caroni Swamp

“And if you look up quickly you will see our national bird.” Everyone’s eyes are now skyward, eager hands fumble at cameras and binoculars and a chorus of oohs and aahs rises from the tour party. As they look back down, something else in the swamp catches their attention, trapped in the tangle of mangrove roots, it’s….what can it be?

Pollution in the Caroni Swamp

Closer inspection uncloaks the mystery, the rusted carcass of an old washing machine. A hush falls on the boat, puzzled looks work their way across the faces of the visitors. The boats drift slowly past a majestic blue heron perched atop a Dell computer monitor.

These travellers came from far and wide to venture into the Caroni Swamp. There are countless wonderful things to see in this diverse habitat. The image that will probably be shared the most, however, is that picture of a bird…standing on a computer…in a swamp. Not an ideal postcard, given that the Caroni Bird Sanctuary is billed as one of the most important eco-tourism sites in Trinidad and Tobago.

Thankfully, that sort of imagery is increasingly rare today in this treasured wetland. The advent of the CEPEP Marine programme has dramatically changed the appearance of the swamp.

At the crack of dawn each morning, CEPEP crews arrive for the daily routine of combing the swamp for society’s waste. At the end of each day, roughly 60 to 80 bags of garbage are collected. That is quite the haul. From discarded fans to microwaves, you name it, they find it.

A CEPEP Marine crew offloads their haul for the day

Protecting wetlands and coastlines

Recognizing the urgent need to remove these pollutants from riverine and coastal environments, CEPEP Marine was born. Crews scour the coastline for waste of every imaginable size and shape; from the Western Peninsula all the way down to South Trinidad, the scope of this programme is vast. 

Contractors average a monthly tally of 6,000 bags of garbage. In fact, since the programme started in 2012, 210,000 bags of garbage have been collected by CEPEP Marine teams. Now that is a staggering statistic!

The benefits of CEPEP Marine, widely felt in many communities across the country, are perhaps best reflected in the Caroni Bird Sanctuary.

A day’s worth of work in the Caroni Swamp

The appropriate disposal of garbage will involve a process of education over time to change inherited bad habits. In the meantime, CEPEP marine delivers a consistent, invaluable service where no other agency, public or private, dares to tread.

In the Caroni Swamp and elsewhere in Trinidad, the importance of this ground-breaking initiative is undeniable.