This latest effort comes after the successful launch of the initiative at the 2009 Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival. The recycling programme is being implemented in partnership with Protect the Environment Trust and the plastic bottles collected will be shredded for export.

"It's the 17th anniversary of Sumfest, the world's most successful reggae festival and we doubt if most patrons ever wondered what happens to the thousands of plastic bottles generated at the event," Carreras said in a release yesterday. "Well, unfortunately they are simply added to the more than 40 million kilos of plastic bottles and containers which enter Jamaica's dumps each year, a situation which those who are keen about protecting the environment find worrying."

It has been determined that it takes approximately 700 years before plastic even begins to break down and that toxins emitted from the burning of plastic have been associated with an increased incidence of asthma and some developmental disorders in children.