Cayman Eco - News & Updates

When Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas last month as a destructive Category 5 storm that lingered for three days killing more than 50 people and leaving thousands homeless, the first reaction of Cayman Islands residents was to come to the aid of a stricken neighbour in need.

Donations flooded into the Red Cross, the police helicopter was dispatched to join the relief effort, and Premier Alden McLaughlin flew to Nassau with a planeload of medical supplies donated by Cayman’s hospitals.

Now as the dust settles and Abaco and Grand Bahama begin the long road to recovery, another reaction is starting to surface: Fear.

The onslaught of disastrous storms to hit the region in the last few years aligns with the hypothesis of climate scientists that warming oceans are likely to fuel more destructive hurricanes.

Caymanians who lived through Hurricane Ivan might have thought they had faced the worst that nature had to offer and lived to tell the tale. But, from the news reports, the accounts of the Cayman police pilots who flew into Abaco and from the premier who met with his Bahamian counterpart in the early days of the relief effort, Dorian was many times worse than anything they had seen before. Worse than Maria, worse than Irma, worse even than Ivan. Read the whole story here.

Caribbean coral reef could be destroyed to make way for cruise ships in the Cayman Islands 

The Soto's Reef, one of those under threat from the George Town harbour expansion CREDIT: COURTNEY PLATT /COURTNEY PLATT

It is one of Britain's most prized coral reefs, sitting off the coast of the Cayman Islands which were praised by Prince Charles as a "shining example" of a Commonwealth nation protecting its marine life.

But 15 acres of the coral reef, which is home to critically endangered turtles, could be destroyed to make way for two cruise ship docks as part of plans to boost tourism.

Environmental campaigners warn the George Town Harbour project will see 22 acres of the seabed dredged, and silt sedimentation will turn the “crystal-clear aquamarine waters to murky white”.

In December, the first publicly initiated referendum on the islands will decide the reef's future, after 25 per cent of the electorate signed a petition to take the decision to a vote.

There are fears it may not save the reef as campaigners claim the Government has withheld the latest designs for the docks, and the date of the vote coming so close to Christmas will mean many residents are on holiday.

“The marine environment is the heritage of the Caymanian people and decisions made today will have consequences for generations to come,” said Shirely Roulstone, of the Cruise Port Referendum (CPR) Cayman campaign group.

“We must be responsible custodians of our precious natural resources.” Read the whole story here.

Environmental credentials claimed by the cruise lines partnering with the Verdant Isle group during their recent visit to the Cayman Islands rang hollow after a US federal judge said that Carnival Corporation was still not doing enough to fix the ocean pollution it caused. Activists campaigning against the cruise port that Verdant Isle has won the bid to build want to know how people in Cayman can trust the port partners when they are violating a court order and continuing to damage the marine environment.

With the date and the question for the referendum on the proposed facility now fixed, activists continue to press government for critical information to help voters decide. In the meantime, they are also concerned about information already in the public domain that raises red flags about the organisations government is planning to work with.

“Cayman cannot afford to partner with an entity that has such a negative track record and that continues to abuse and remain non-compliant with court orders and breach environmental laws,” a spokesperson for CPR said.

They urged voters to come out in record numbers and say “no to the destruction of our God-given marine environment which ‘He hath founded it upon the seas’ for us all to enjoy and protect,” CPR said.

The news that Carnival is still not fulfilling the terms of its probation was aired in a Miami federal court last week, when Judge Patricia Seitz said she had expected more concrete action and fewer promises from the world’s biggest cruise line in addressing the conviction over pollution dating back to 2016.

Carnival was fined a further $20 million for violating the terms of its probation, on top of the original $40 million fine imposed in 2016. Read the whole story here.

Work crews have been required to clean up the beaches and occasionally the streets on days when Grand Cayman has been inundated.

You smell it, before you see it. That pungent rotten-egg scent that carries on the sea breeze is the ﬁrst warning sign of an unwelcome visitor to Cayman’s shores.

It was impossible to travel around Grand Cayman this summer without encountering sargassum. Thick brown clumps of the stringy seaweed clogged up coastal inlets and swamped beaches for weeks at a time. Hotels and condos were severely impacted. Residents suffered the suffocating odour and saw their beach access diminished. Crews of unemployed people were mobilised to clear the coastline while government and hoteliers were forced to shell out for specialist equipment to maintain the island’s pristine sandy beaches.

In comparison to some of our neighbours in the region, Cayman has been lucky. Seven Mile Beach has remained relatively unscathed and the efforts of business owners and government have kept the impact on tourism to a minimum. So far. Scientists agree that regular sargassum landings are likely to be the “new normal” for the Caribbean. For some countries, it may simply be a seasonal irritant; for others, it could be an existential threat to their tourism industries. Where Cayman will ﬁt within that spectrum remains to be seen. Read the whole story here.

Anyone owning a Cayman parrot has until 29 Feb. 2020 to register it. - PHOTO: STUART MAILER

Sixty Cayman parrots have been signed up for registration so far under the Department of Environment’s ongoing amnesty.

The department said 54 birds on Grand Cayman and six on Cayman Brac have been signed up.

The six-month amnesty began this month and is scheduled to end in February 2020.

It is illegal to possess a Cayman parrot, but the DoE opted to give those keeping the parrots as pets an opportunity to register the birds, rather than confiscating all parrots being kept as pets.

Additionally, the department does not have the resources to deal with so many seized birds.

The DoE, in a statement to the Cayman Compass, said the amnesty efforts have been going well. Read the whole story here.

Illuminated by the moody glow of a dozen torchlights, a group of divers hovers over the reef.

The distinctive antler-like shape of a large staghorn formation emerges from the gloom. An octopus squirts between coral heads. Bloodworms swarm in the torch beams.

It’s just after 10pm on a reef off East End known as Fantasea Land. It is an unusual time to be in the water, but the group from Ocean Frontiers dive shop is here for a reason. One of the most iconic displays in nature is about to begin.

Tiny pink bubbles fizz from a large head of mountainous star coral, so named because of the peaks and valleys that cover its stony surface. Then it erupts, and bundles of gametes gush into the water column, drifting upwards like a snowstorm in reverse.

Across Cayman’s reefs, the same phenomenon occurs almost simultaneously. Within the space of 20 minutes, six or seven nights after the September full moon, almost every hard coral in Cayman’s reef system spontaneously reproduces. Read the whole story here.

Dozens of adults joined the younger generation on Friday evening for the Sunset Climate Strike in George Town. The teenage organisers from Protect Our Future focused on the specific threat to the harbour from the port project, on a day where millions of people around the world protested the lack of action on climate change. Dejea Lyons (16), one of the leaders of the local campaign, said she is very worried that the government here is not listening but it is her generation that will suffer.

Lyons told CNS that she and her fellow teenage activists are very frustrated that they will not be able to vote in the upcoming referendum. “If I could I would vote ‘no’ a thousand times,” she said, adding that she was convinced that if teenage students could vote, 90% of them would also say no to the project.

As one of the leaders of Protect our Future, an organisation which has gathered momentum in very short period of time, Lyons is passionate about conserving the natural beauty of her home. But the campaign has seen many local young people get involved in the goal to raise awareness about the environment and what is being lost, which will have a detrimental impact on their generation.

The decision by the young people to use the global action day on climate change to focus on the cruise port project is because of the specific impact the loss of so much irreplaceable marine habitat will have on them. Lyons said that the young people need “the adults that can vote to hear us”, as she noted that they “will be the ones that are going to be clearing up the mess” they leave behind. “But I am really worried that government just isn’t listening to the people,” she said. Read the whole story here.

A controversial $167 million resort project proposed for the quiet residential community of Beach Bay has not only raised significant concerns for the residents in the area but also the Department of Environment. The DoE has said that the National Conservation Council does not require the developers to conduct an EIA because local experts are already familiar with the site. However, the department has identified a number of problems with the planned development.

In its submission to the Central Planning Authority, which is set to hear the application Wednesday, the DoE said that if the CPA does grant planning permission it should not allow the developer to build on the beach, as currently proposed. The applicant wants to put beachfront villas, a pool deck, a guest services area, a pathway and a even a sewer directly on the beach, which will reduce the beach significantly.

“This has the effect of reducing the beach area by almost half in some areas,” the DoE stated.”The existing beach is approximately 170 feet wide at its widest point and with the proposed villas, sewer and pathway, there will be only approximately 90 feet remaining of beach. While we understand the desire to create an experience where villas open directly onto the beach, we do not support building directly on the beach.” Read the whole story here.

Department of Environment officers, en route by boat to Cayman Brac last week, freed a turtle they came across that was trapped in a floating ‘ghost net’.

DoE Conservation Officer Joe Kellog and Cayman Brac Field Officer Martin van der Touw rescued the tangled turtle as they travelled to Grand Cayman from Cayman Brac. The 26 Aug. rescue was captured on video and posted online.

The video, posted on the DoE’s Facebook page, appears to show the turtle swimming freely in the water moments after the net was removed.

Ghost nets are fishing nets left or lost in the ocean by fishermen. The nets can be dangerous for marine life as they can trap animals or get hung up on reefs.

In April 2018, a ghost net with dead sharks and hundreds of other fish trapped inside was discovered on a reef north of Grand Cayman. It was towed to shore by local fishermen and removed from the water. Read the whole story and watch the video here.

The Department of Environment is hoping that if Cabinet accepts the recommendations of the National Conservation Council for a species protection plan for mangroves, it will help curtail the constant clearance of these important plants for development. With a number of sites, from West Bay to Snug Harbour, being cleared of mangroves in recent months ahead of more canal and other developments, the DoE is in a constant battle to preserve them.

Despite mangrove buffer zones on the now extremely dated National Development Plan and the DoE’s recommendations that developers try to use mangroves in landscaping and retain the buffers around canal developments, they are often ignored. The DoE urges developers not to clear mangroves until construction is ready to start, but that advice is also often unheeded, with some developers clearing sites even before planning permission is granted without any apparent consequences.

“The clearing of mangroves is a major issue and it is happening sometimes without permission and it is too late for us to have any input after the fact,” DoE Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie told CNS.

She hopes that the proposed species protection plan for mangroves will make it harder for the CPA to ignore the environmental issues regarding mangroves and will stop this general clearance of mangroves unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Ebanks-Petrie said that clearance should not be happening without some kind of scrutiny. The DoE should be making their recommendations to planning about proposed developments on uncleared land, especially about eco-alternatives to mass land clearance that can lead to landscapes that are native and far easier and cheaper to manage.

While the DoE has managed with work with the developers to preserve a mangrove buffer at one planned canal development off the Esterly Tibbetts Highway, they were not so successful with another development. They were unable to prevent the CPA from granting planning permission to a site where the mangrove buffer has now been completely cleared. Even government has ripped out several acres of mangrove off Boatswain Road ahead of the development of a new police station in West Bay. Read the whole story here.

Letter: CPR outlines key concerns on cruise berthing facility – part 3 of 3

A cruise ship docks at Nassau, Bahamas. Proposals are under way to create a new cruise ship dock at Lighthouse Point in Eleuthra, Bahamas.

Proudly supporting participatory democracy in our country, the first people-initiated referendum will empower voters to have their say on the cruise berthing facility.

This letter forms Part 3 of a 3-part letter which seeks to highlight some, but not all, of the numerous significant and unquantified risks associated with this project. Part one can be read here and part two can be read here.

What will Caymanians really pay for the project? Governments have a duty to deliver value-for-money projects with public finances.

Capital investment will be CI$196 million for Option 2 from the preferred bidder, Verdant Isle Consortium, funded by (1) 40% from its own capital (2) 60% through a bank loan. However, required feasibility studies and public infrastructure costs remain either unassessed or publicly undisclosed including: (1) Geotechnical study of George Town Harbour (2) George Town revitalisation (3) Road upgrades (4) Increased demand for island resources – waste management/water/electricity (5) Spotts Dock upgrades (6) Coral and shipwreck relocation.

What are the interest rates and payment terms to repay investors (1) Verdant Isle; and (2) on the Bank loan? Section 3.6 of the Outline Business Case (PWC report) indicates private cost of funds could be 10-15% per year, who will ultimately pay for this?

Two men were arrested last Wednesday on suspicion of poaching and drug offences after police and customs found a green turtle shell and meat during a raid at a West Bay home. RCIPS and Customs and Border Control officers carried out a joint operation at a house on Up The Hill Road, where they recovered a package of ganja from one of the men. But during a search of a vehicle at the location they also discovered a still bloody turtle shell and then a package of turtle meat inside the house.

A 27-year-old man from Bodden Town was arrested for possession and consumption of ganja as well as taking marine life without being licensed. A second man, aged 39 of West Bay, was also arrested over the poached turtle.

Detective Superintendent Peter Lansdown said the raid had been based on suspicion about drug offences but the discovery of the turtle shell and meat was quite significant.

“As the police service, it is part of our remit to investigate and prosecute these offences as well, in conjunction with our partner agencies, and it is a responsibility we take very seriously,” he stated.

This is the second adult green turtle discovered to have been poached in the West Bay area recently. The DoE also found a shell in a dumpster in the district, indicating that the animal had already been butchered.

Dr Janice Blumenthal, a specialist in turtles at the Department of Environment, said that this most recent discovery demonstrates the ongoing threat poachers present to the endangered species.

“The shell was taken from an adult green sea turtle that was one of less than 150 such animals left in the wild around the Cayman Islands. It is also the second turtle shell recovered in an apparent poaching incident within the past month on Grand Cayman,” she said. “Although the Department of Environment has seen a steady increase in the number of turtle nests in recent years, poaching of even a few endangered adult sea turtles can lead to a reversal of that trend very quickly.” Read the whole story here.

The shifting sand on one of West Bay’s most famous beaches has caused considerable public concern this summer as large parts of it disappeared. Beaches are dynamic, with sand coming and going depending on the time of year and seasonal weather conditions, but the recent disappearance of a swathe of Boggy Sand Beach has raised the alarm. While some sand has begun to return in recent days, the beach is nowhere near its usual glory and experts believe the beach is still in jeopardy.

Tim Austin, the deputy director of the Department of Environment, said there is mounting concern about sea level rise here and the impact that this will have on coastal development. “It appears to be happening quite rapidly,” Austin told CNS, as he raised concerns about the continued over-development along the coast and the frequent violation of setbacks in planning applications.

Boggy Sand is one of the more vulnerable locations, he said, explaining that while the sand comes and goes, every year the ‘coming’ appears to be decreasing as the ‘going’ is increasing. The DoE believes there is growing evidence that weather patterns and storms, such as Nor’westers, are not as frequent or as powerful as they once were in the winter and they are bringing less sand back after the summer erosion.

The coastal development along Boggy Sand especially, given the size of some of the homes that have been built too close to the water, has contributed to the problems along this popular and much loved part of West Bay. However, the DoE experts agree that the combination of the seawall and a gazebo built at the water’s edge are the main sources of the problem on the area of beach impacted this year. Read the whole story here.

Cruise Port Referendum Cayman has submitted a three-part letter to the Cayman Compass outlining its concerns about the proposed facility. This is part 2. The first part can be read here.

As our islands approach the first people-initiated referendum, critical data voters need to make a truly informed decision on the cruise berthing facility have still not been made public. The government should release any undisclosed information that they do hold immediately, and the referendum date should be scheduled to allow for the completion of and public consultation on the updated Environmental Impact Assessment and updated Final Business Case reports, to allow our citizens to make a fully informed decision on this matter of national importance.

This letter forms part 2 of a 3-part letter which seeks to highlight some, but not all, of the numerous significant and unquantified risks associated with this project. Information has been obtained by CPR from publicly available reports found on the websites for the Department of Tourism, www.supportourtourism.com, and Department of Environment, www.doe.ky. Read the whole story here.

Thousands of local ‘ching-chings’ (also known as greater antillean grackles) perch on overhead lines in downtown
George Town last week. (Photo: Taneos Ramsay)

After being sent a video of the Hitchcockian scene on the waterfront, Geddes Hislop, curator of terrestrial exhibits and education programmes at the Cayman Turtle Centre, confirmed the birds were ching-chings, based on the “harsh, raspy calls plus the distinct vertical paddle-shaped configuration of the tails on the males”.

He said via email, “We can start looking out for swooping flocks of barn and cliff swallows coming through. Late September/early October is usually the start of (early) winter migration season, and the swallows are the first to pass through in numbers.”

Cruise Port Referendum volunteers Billy Adam and
Laura Egglishaw collect signatures for the petition

Officials from the Elections Office say they have now verified 88.8% of the required number of signatures on the Cruise Port Referendum petition to trigger the national poll. As of 3pm Saturday, the team had checked 4,698 names and now has fewer than 600 names to check to reach the required 5,292 signatures of registered voters calling for a people-initiated referendum on the proposed cruise berthing project in George Town.

Despite the continued efforts by the pro-port lobby and government to encourage people to ‘un-verify’, the verification process is nearing the home straight.

There are still 965 signatures from which to collect the last 594, and the campaigners are still collecting names to make up for those people who have changed their mind since signing, have refused to verify or have been allowed to sign, verify and then un-verify. It therefore appears that the petition is on track to be 100% confirmed by the end of this month.

The CPR volunteers and activists are encouraging people who have not yet registered to vote to go to the Elections Office to ensure that they can take part in the poll, which is likely to take place before Christmas.

CNS has learned there are no plans, as have been previously suggested on various talk shows, to hold the referendum as early as October, given the work required to prepare the country for a national vote. This means there is still time for eligible Caymanians who are not registered to make the next voter list and take part. Read the whole story here.

South Sound has changed drastically over the past decade with housing developments and condominiums filling in the beachfront stretch of road. For better or worse, however, one landmark has remained: the ‘Shoe Tree’.

In reality, the site encompasses three casuarina trees, two living and one dead. Hundreds of flip-flops and other footwear dot the trees and spill over into the surrounding beach.

For tourists, the site has become a photo opportunity and a place to leave their mark on Grand Cayman. New flip-flops nailed to the trees bear messages like, ‘I ♥ Cayman from MKE, WI’, ‘Don’t mess with TX’, and ‘For our Daddy in Afghanistan’.

Travel pages recommend the site as an off-beat attraction. On Google, reviewers have left the ‘historical landmark’ with a 3.9-star rating.

For South Sound residents, however, the site has become a point of contention. With all the construction that has transformed the neighbourhood, many locals question why the Shoe Tree has remained unchanged. Read the whole story here.

Cruise Port Referendum Cayman has submitted a three-part letter to the Cayman Compass outlining its concerns about the proposed facility. This is part 1.

As the Elections Office verification process passes 85% and the first constitutionally enshrined people-initiated referendum becomes a certainty, much of the critical data Caymanian voters will need to be able to truly make an informed decision, has still not been made public by the government.

The government should release any undisclosed information that they do hold immediately, and the referendum date should be scheduled to allow for the completion of and public consultation on the updated Environmental Impact Assessment and updated Final Business Case reports, to allow citizens of our islands to make a fully informed decision on this matter of national importance.

This three-part letter seeks to highlight some, but not all, of the numerous significant and unquantified risks where mitigation strategies could be (i) high cost (ii) unidentified (iii) based on unreliable data or (iv) subject to environmental uncertainty associated with this project. Read the whole story here.

Thirteen baby blue iguanas hatched in Grand Cayman this week, resulting from captive-breeding efforts by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands.

The latest batch of hatchlings makes 2019 one of the most successful recent breeding years for the Blue Iguana Recovery Program, explained operations manager Luke Harding.

In the early days, workers will be focussed on keeping the young reptiles warm, dry and fed.

“They all seem to have hatched very well,” Harding said, adding that the seven born in June continue to eat and grow.

Eleven of the hatchlings born this week resulted from just one pair of parents, he said. The other two came from a second pair of parents.

Moving forward, breeding in such large numbers will no longer be the programme’s focus, however, Harding explained.

Now that the programme has surpassed its goal of releasing 1,000 captive-bred iguanas to the wild, researchers will turn to the next phase of conserving the endangered reptile.

Breeding efforts will now focus less on propagating large numbers and will seek to promote genetic diversity. Read the whole story here.

The planning ministry is seeking bidders to construct a 94ft dock at Coewood Beach in Bodden Town, though the findings of the coastal works application have not yet been released. The Public Works Department will be managing the project and general contractors are being asked to submit proposals to build the pier and a timber trellis by 23 August. According to the details on the government’s tender portal, the seabed in the location presents some geological challenges.

It is also an area with a considerable amount of seagrass, but so far the details of the marine ecology in the area have not been released as the coastal works application is still with Cabinet awaiting approval. Read the whole story here.

Governor Martyn Roper (centre-left, green shirt) and reigning Miss World Cayman Islands Kelsie Woodman-Bodden (centre-right, green shirt), lead a pack of about 100 people participating in Sunday’s inaugural EnviroWalk. The 5K event held at SafeHaven was organised by the Miss World Cayman Islands Committee to promote the environment.– Photo: Taneos Ramsay

Government is standing by a Facebook post claiming that people who have signed the petition calling for a referendum on the cruise port can have their signatures withdrawn – even after they have filled out verification forms.

The post ran on government’s pro-port social media page alongside an advert saying, “contact the Elections Office and have your say if you would like your name removed from the petition”.

Amid accusations of political interference in the verification process, the Ministry of Tourism defended the post this week.

“The public has a right to be accurately informed about their options regarding the petition, including how they can unverify their name should they wish to do so,” the ministry said in a statement following emailed questions from the Compass. Johann Moxam, one of the campaigners for a referendum, said the posts were “direct examples of political interference and intimidation” and were designed to encourage people to withdraw support for the referendum. He has called on the governor to intervene.

In a press release Wednesday, Supervisor of Elections Wes Howell confirmed the Elections Office is accepting requests from petitioners to “unverify” their signatures. So far, he said only 2 people had done so. Read the whole story here.

Department of Environment officials measure the size of a turtle shell found in a dumpster in Morgan’s Harbour. It is suspected the animal was a victim of poaching.

A shell that came from a green turtle estimated to weigh from 300 to 400 pounds, was found Saturday in a dumpster in Morgan’s Harbour. Officials believe the shell likely came from a poached turtle.

Department of Environment research officer Janice Blumenthal said police received an anonymous call alerting them to the shell, which was more than 3½ feet long. She said the DoE typically documents several such acts of poaching each year.

In an email, Blumenthal said she could not comment on whether police had any leads in the case as it is an ongoing investigation. The shell is being held for evidence.

A study done in 2014‑2015 surveyed 560 people in Cayman about their use of turtle meat.

“At least 195 households were estimated to have bought illegal wild turtle meat during the 12 months prior to this study,” Blumenthal said. Read the whole story here.

The Elections Office has verified around 75% of the petition calling for a people’s referendum on the cruise berthing project. By Saturday afternoon the signatures of 3,958 people were confirmed, leaving just over 1,300 verified signatures needed to trigger the national vote. Following last week’s press conference, the premier indicated that the petition would not be challenged in the court if the numbers are reached but he would be seeking to hold the ballot as soon as possible.

Calling the poll quickly will put pressure on the activists behind the campaign for the referendum, who will be switching the campaign towards the actual vote and the question.

The activists are now urging everyone who is eligible to vote but who has not yet registered to do so as soon as possible to ensure that they will be able to vote in this crucial ballot, which will have significant implications for the environment and the economy.

The Elections Office has taken less than six weeks to get to the three-quarter mark, and while the last thousand is likely to be the hardest, the verification could easily be completed by the end of this month.

Government has confirmed that, although they selected the Verdant Isle group and two cruise lines as the preferred bidder last month, which in the end was the only bid that met the qualification criteria, no deal will be signed before 1 October to give the Elections Office time to confirm that all 5,292 signatures needed for the vote are those of registered voters. Read the whole story here.

A new carport topped with solar panels will soon be supplying a portion of the power used by the Government Administration Building in George Town.

The Ministry of Commerce, Planning and Infrastructure is analysing bids for the structure, which is planned for the parking area behind the government centre. Specifications call for the solar array to generate 100 kilowatt hours of electricity, between 5% and 10% of the building’s needs.

In an email response to questions, officials declined to provide an estimate on the cost of the project. It is expected to be completed within six months of the bid award.

Ministry officials told the Compass that the 100 kW system corresponds to the “maximum allowed by the Caribbean Utilities Company for commercial building”. The electricity will feed directly into the power grid as part of the customer-owned renewable energy programme, known as CORE. Read the whole story here.

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands (CNS) – Development in the Cayman Islands shows no signs of slowing and becoming in any way sustainable after the Central Planning Authority (CPA) approved over half a billion dollars worth of projects in the first six months of this year. Despite the premier's claims that the National Conservation Law is stifling development, the CPA green-lit an unprecedented 380 projects over the first two quarters of 2019; another 659 planning permits, valued at more than $205 million, were also issued over the same period.

While some of this total represents small projects or family homes, a significant amount of the applications appearing before the CPA are much larger developments, including condos, apartments, mixed-use projects, hotels, and other major commercial endeavours.

Although the government constantly talks about the need for more sustainable development, the amount of work in the planning pipeline, especially on the oceanfront, does not appear to be in the least bit sustainable. Moreover, the revelation that the CPA has given 'approval' to more than CI$523 million worth of projects comes at a time when officials from the planning department are promising improvements to the systems that will make it even easier and quicker for developers to submit applications to the CPA. Read the whole story here.

To incentivise use of environmentally friendly transportation, customs duties have been reduced for electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as for bicycles.

Commerce Minister Joey Hew made the announcement Thursday before the Legislative Assembly.

Bicycles, electric motorcycles and electric bicycles will not incur any customs duties upon import.

Additionally, no duty will be imposed for the import of electric vehicles for personal use valued under $29,000. Hybrid vehicles for personal use, valued under $29,000, will have a duty of 10%.

Electric and hybrid vehicles of the same value will incur duties of 5% and 12%, respectively, when imported for commercial use. Read the whole story here.

An architect's impression shows how the new cruise pier and cargo port could look.

Government held a press conference Monday to outline details of the planned cruise and cargo port project. Premier Alden McLaughlin, Deputy Premier Moses Kirkconnell, Chief Officer in the Ministry of Tourism Stran Bodden and Project Manager Peter Ranger gave details of the project and answered questions from the media.

McLaughlin said they had been unable to give crucial details about the cost, funding formula and final design until now, because those specifics were all determined as part of the bid process.

Here, we summarise the key information from the press conference. Read the whole story here.

The 2019 Guy Harvey Foundation Stingray census is now in the books and one of Cayman’s main attractions has seen record-breaking numbers in Stingrays.

Guy Harvey Foundation communications coordinator Louisa Gibson outlined the process.

“So we do the bi-annual survey twice a year, in January and in July and this was the second of the 2019 survey. What we do is we have a team of volunteers, and we go out over the course of three days. It’s called an exhaustive census where we process every Stingray that we can find until we can’t find anymore. We catch them by hand, transfer them into a salmon net and bring them on board the boat into a kitty pool, from there we cover the barb up so no one gets injured and then we start our processing, which includes measuring the Stingrays from wing to wing, and we recently started doing ultrasounds with all of the sexually matured Stingrays. So we have a wildlife vet that comes down from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay her name is Dr. Dominique Keller,” said Ms. Gibson.

Ms. Gibson said judging from the results, the population seems to be safe. “There was also an increased number of pregnancies. In the past, we calculated about 30% of the mature females being pregnant and this year it was 51%, and they had between one and five pups of all different stages of pregnancies, which was awesome,” said Ms. Gibson.

But that positive finding in the survey also revealed a negative trend. Read the whole story here.

CPR Cayman Responds - Verdant Isle's Group Announced as Port Preferred Bidder

Campaigners for a referendum on the port project said Government's announcement on the Preferred Bidder was an expected part of the process and welcomed government’s acknowledgment that no contract should be finalized until after the petition verification process is complete.

Cruise Port Referendum (CPR) Cayman, said it was now incumbent on Government to reveal the full details about the cost of the project, how it would be funded and the revised designs. Government has previously indicated that it was not able to give these details while the procurement process for the Proposed Cruise Berthing Facility and Upgraded Cargo Area was taking place.

It is also understood that the winning bidder of the Finance, Design, and Build contract will be responsible for financing an update to the Environmental Impact Assessment on the final design. The details of how that process will take place and other aspects of how the project proceeds are expected to be revealed Monday.

In welcoming Government's announcement, CPR Cayman added again that the Government should also not sign any binding contracts or contracts with penalty, until after the referendum result to avoid paying contract breach penalties with public funds.

As a grassroots community organisation CPR Cayman was / is seeking more information in an effort for Caymanians to be able to make an informed decision on this very substantial project that will not only affect our marine environment but also our Territory’s finances, social fabric and quality of life. Read the whole story here.

Government is considering hiring full-time crews to keep the island’s beaches sargassum free after unemployed workers in the NiCE programme removed 200 tons of the foul-smelling seaweed from Grand Cayman’s coastline in the space of two weeks.

Commerce Minister Joey Hew said the programme had been extended for two weeks to allow some of the participants to keep working on clearing the seaweed.

“We recognise this is an ongoing situation that will require continuous effort,” he said.

“The ministry has decided to extend the NiCE programme for a further two weeks as a pilot programme which will involve a small crew with additional equipment. That will allow us to better assess resources to manage the problem in the long term.”

Once that process is complete, he said government would evaluate the best strategy for keeping the beaches clear.

Beaches across the Caribbean and Central America have been inundated with sargassum in recent years and scientists predict the phenomenon will continue. In some islands and parts of Mexico the tourism industry has been impacted with white sand beaches almost permanently covered in seaweed. The impact in Cayman has been less severe, but several hotels and water-sports businesses have been affected at various times, and residents have complained of public beaches and verges piling up with sargassum. Read the whole story here.

The Cayman Islands National Conservation Council has released an online survey to encourage as many local residents as possible to weigh in on the Council’s draft sea turtle species conservation plan.

The draft species conservation plan was approved on 19 June by the Council and was released for public consultation on 3 July, as required under the National Conservation Law. The consultation period will run through 9 Sept.

“It was important to NCC members that we try to reach as many people as possible and seek their views on this conservation plan that seeks to protect Cayman’s iconic marine reptile,” said DoE Director and Council member Gina Ebanks-Petrie. “We will collate all comments received and use those to inform and amend the plan as we go forward.”

“I encourage all of Cayman’s residents to participate in this survey,” said Minister of Environment Dwayne Seymour. “Sea turtles are one of Cayman’s best-known symbols and we should all take an interest in this work to help protect them.”

The Elections Office verified more than 60% of the names on the Cruise Port Referendum petition by Monday evening. Elections staff now need to confirm another 2,085 names from the 2,430 remaining signatures on the petition to reach the target of 5,292 to trigger the national vote on the government’s proposed cruise port facility.

Less than a month after the Elections Office began the process to confirm the referendum petition, which is provided for under section 70 of the Constitution, staff have managed to confirm that 3,207 people who signed the petition are qualified voters who have confirmed their support of the petition’s request for a national poll.

Elections staff are now going door-to-door in all districts, having started in George Town this week. The office is also setting up signing booths at local supermarkets at weekends and on selected afternoons. The Elections Office has extended its hours until 6:30pm on weekdays and is open on Saturdays. Read the whole story here.

The research team counted and tagged stingrays at the sandbar for three days from Friday to Sunday.

A record 115 stingrays were counted in the biannual population survey at the Sandbar.

The count continues an encouraging recent trend that has seen numbers steadily rising at the popular tourist attraction. The census had dipped to 57 in 2012 but is now more than double that figure, according to Jessica Harvey of the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation.

Harvey said, “It is very encouraging to see so many rays, especially from a tourism perspective.”

She said the reasons for the population surge were not clear. The foundation uses a team of volunteers to count the rays at the Sandbar twice every year.

Researchers catch the rays by hand, swim them into a salmon net and lift them on board where they are transferred to a paddling pool, while the team takes the vital measurements and checks for tags.

One concern flagged this year was that several rays appeared to have injuries associated with fishing.

“There were two that had hooks in their mouths and a couple of others had injuries that we believe are caused by hooks.”

She said it was possible that the rays were accidentally hooked and cut free by North Sound fishermen, and urged anglers to take care not to hook the rays, particularly at night.

Another ray had a wound that was suspected to be a result of a spearfishing incident. Harvey said she was still seeking to confirm if that was the case.

Any type of fishing for rays is illegal under the National Conservation Law.The rays face other threats, though, which cannot be controlled. One had injuries from a shark bite.

The research team also includes a vet, who performs an ultrasound on each of the female rays.

During the census, which took place from Friday to Sunday, they found more than 50% of the females of reproductive age were pregnant. Read the whole story here.

The public is being urged to learn about and understand the National Conservation Law so that they can properly contribute to the current review and make the most of the law itself, which also provides for considerable public input in various areas.

Taking to the radio waves last week, officials from the Department of Environment talked about the importance of this legislation, which is designed to protect native species and habitat and to ensure that consideration is given to the natural world before it is built on.

“The National Conservation Law does provide a lot of entry points for the public in the conservation process and we are very pleased to see it is being taken up,” said DoE Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie. She explained that it was public pressure that led to the National Conservation Council considering placing some of Cayman’s land crab species on the species protection list in the law.

John Bothwell, DoE Legislation and Coordination Manager, also stressed the importance of public input on environmental issues. He said that when people take part in the consultation on conservation questions, their comments and opinions go before the decision makers in Cabinet.

However, the NCL is not a full environmental law as it does not deal with issues of clean energy or air pollution. The director explained that Cayman still needs legislative protection in these areas and that the planning law is in desperate need of an overhaul. Read the whole story here.

Part of the work in building the resilience of coral reefs is coral outplanting, as seen in this photo of staghorn coral. - Photo: CCMI

The Central Caribbean Marine Institute has received a US$68,000 donation from the AALL foundation to support its coral restoration field work.

The funds will provide a boost to CCMI’s Coral Restoration Programme, launched in 2012 in partnership with the Cayman Islands Department of Environment. The institute now has three nurseries that support coral restoration research dedicated to improving intervention strategies in Cayman and across the Caribbean.

“The AALL Foundation funding comes at a critical time for CCMI, as our research programme is working hard to unlock the secrets of coral resiliency, embarking on a deliberate five-year research agenda to grow a more resilient and robust community of corals,” said CCMI President Carrie Manfrino in a press statement.

“CCMI and our marine field station in Little Cayman affords modern laboratory facilities, an unspoiled coral reef ecosystem, and significant scientific affiliations – which are key to building CCMI’s capacity to advance the frontiers of knowledge about coral regeneration. We are deeply thankful to the AALL Foundation for this support.”

AALL trustee Sophia Harris said the donation is part of the work the foundation has worked to support over the past 30 years.

“It is hoped that with the increased awareness of the endangerment of our reefs and our very ecosystems, in general, CCMI and indeed any initiatives to improve these conditions, will gain more support,” Harris said in a press statement. Read the whole story here.

Government has put the question of whether or not the Cayman Islands should ban single-use plastics into the hands of a committee, but based on the response to a parliamentary question, the decision appears to be a long way off. Answering a question in the Legislative Assembly from MLA Kenneth Bryan (GTC) about plans for making Cayman plastic free, Environment Minister Dwayne Seymour said he and Commerce Minister Joey Hew had set up a committee to help develop a policy on single-use plastics.

Despite the urgency and warnings about how badly plastics are contaminating the sea and shorelines in the region and the extreme negative impact it could have on Caribbean economies, Seymour is asking the committee to first consider the validity of the concerns raised.

He is suggesting that there should then be a period of more than three months for public input about the harm of single-use plastics before the committee considers a way to cut the negative impact on the environment and human health. Only then would the committee develop a national policy, review legislation that would impact or be impacted by it, and examine the effect of a new policy on international treaties, conventions or obligations.

Finally, he is suggesting that the committee be required to submit a report to Cabinet within 30 days of the conclusion of the public consultation period. The minister said that this stakeholder steering committee, which he and Hew will co-chair, will consist of representatives from various government departments, industry associations, environmental organisations and businesses, including distributors, grocers and small food services, as well as a youth parliamentarian representative. Read the whole story here.

A group of Bodden Town children got to see the Department of Environment release tiny baby turtles into the sea at Pease Bay on Thursday. – Photo: Jewel Levy

A group of children had a magical and educational experience on Thursday night when they got to see up close the release of 100 baby turtles into the wild.

“It was a great experience for me because I never experienced anything like this,” Aaliyah Powell said, after she watched the hatchlings wiggle their way across the beach to the open sea.

“The baby turtles were so cute, and it was a fantastic experience to see them brave off into the ocean by themselves to expand the survival of their species,” she said. Read the whole story and watch the video here.

Marine pollution is threatening the economic prosperity of the Caribbean, especially its smaller islands, according to a recent report by the World Bank. Over-fishing, coral reef decline and plastic are all major threats, and the report found that Caribbean beaches could have three times the amount of plastic than the global average, largely due to poor waste management. The world’s most popular destinations are now hot-spots for marine debris.

Marine Pollution in the Caribbean: Not a Minute to Waste, analyses the causes and offers solutions for ocean pollution in the wider Caribbean Region (WCR). Data from beach and coastal clean-ups indicates that plastic beverage bottles alone amounted to 21% of the items recorded. Among all plastic items collected, 35% were single-use plastics.

“Marine pollution has been growing at alarming rates in the WCR,” the authors write. “Marine pollution pays no respect to national borders— pollutants generated in one country can find their way to the waters of another.” Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS) “are exposed to concentrations of marine litter that are disproportionate to their own consumption and population”.

The report found that the region is extremely vulnerable to the impact of ocean pollution because of the dependence on natural resources for fishing and tourism. Read the whole story here.

Activists opposing the development of the proposed cruise berthing facilities in the George Town Harbour reminded people on social media this weekend about one of the many natural wonders that will be lost if the project goes ahead. The arrival of the silversides this month at Eden Rock and Devil’s Grotto is a spectacular underwater show that is a very popular attraction for divers. But once the pier construction gets underway, this natural wonder will be lost forever.

For only a few weeks in July, huge schools of the tiny fish form incredible formations as they swim in unison in order to avoid the numerous predators that come to feed. As the sun shines into the water and onto the fish, as they dart in and out of the tunnels and caves in this area of the harbour, the show attracts divers and underwater photographers from all over the world.

Sustainable Cayman, which posted the images caught by underwater photographer Ellen Cuylaerts, noted, “This magnificent asset will be lost under silt and sedimentation if the proposed cruise berthing facility moves forward.” Read the whole story here.

All across the Caribbean countries are being urged to brace themselves for potential heat waves and prepare for the harmful side effects associated with it.

Here in Cayman, forecasters with the National Weather Services (NWS) said there are several reasons why this summer will be hotter than most.

Topping the list of current global weather activities that are having some sort of an effect on Cayman’s weather is an ongoing El Nino phenomenon in the Pacific region, so said NWS Senior Weather Forecaster Gilbert Miller.

He told Cayman 27 other developments leaving the African Coast eventually react with other regional systems.

“The humidity in the air and strong Sahara dust that is coming into our region is suppressing the convection that we would use to cool down the atmosphere,” said Mr. Miller.

Mr. Miller said PAHO’s warnings of increased heat waves for the region is something Cayman residents should heed. Read the whole story here.

Cayman continues to battle waves of Sargassum washing up on our shores. American scientists are urging Caribbean countries like the Cayman Islands to start preparing for more Sargassum blooms. This as they said the situation will not get better anytime soon. The Cayman Islands has been battling major Sargassum blooms since the start of 2019 creating havoc on the island’s shores. University of South Florida (USF) scientist Mengqiu Wang said its impact is also being felt under the water.

“We have already observed coral that has been damaged because of this intensive Sargassum occurrence. Because we are still in the Sargassum growing season, we are expecting major Sargassum blooms to continue in the next few months.”

Ms. Wang said the annoying weed is at its worst since 2011, stating that her recent research revealed a startling discovery.

“We have observed from our satellite record a great Atlantic Sargassum belt that stretches from the west of Africa toward to the central Atlantic, through the Caribbean Sea and all the way reaching the Gulf of Mexico,” said Ms. Wang. The university scientist said it is growing. Read the whole story here.

Members of the team installing Cayman’s first Tesla residential batteries in the home of Allan Holdsworth: from left, Jose Zambrano, Greentech Solar CEO Richard Harrison, Holdsworth, Peter Torres, Kerby Powell and Eduardo Mejia. - Photo: Taneos Ramsay

Eduardo Mejia thinks Tesla batteries, recently approved for residential buildings in Cayman, could help change the renewable energy market on the island.

Mejia, a quality control inspector for Tesla, who is based in Puerto Rico, spent Tuesday overseeing the installation of the first two Tesla batteries to be placed in a home here, where they will supplement an existing solar power system.

During the day, the solar cells not only provide power to the five-bedroom home in Grand Harbour, but will also charge the batteries. Once the sun goes down, the batteries will keep the property powered through the night.

That excess will go back into the Cayman Utilities Company system. Kerby Powell, a master electrician with GreenTech Solar, believes that as more such systems are added to homes and businesses across the island, they may help keep the lights on in other homes during a crisis, such as a hurricane. Read the whole story here.

George Town Manager Colin Lumsden delivers a presentation on the revitalisation of the capital to civil servants on 20 June.
A town hall meeting will be held on Thursday, 18 July, to discuss ways of revitalising George Town.

Colin Lumsden, who holds the titles of George Town Manager and Revitalisation Initiative Coordinator, will host the public meeting, which will begin at 4:30pm at Constitution Hall, George Town (formerly known as George Town Town Hall).

According to a media advisory, the event “will offer a presentation and project update alongside the chance for the public to ask questions and outline their priorities and aspirations for the revitalised George Town”.

Lumsden, who had worked as an architect with the Public Works Department and helped design the George Town Library, took up the role as George Town Manager on 15 Oct. last year.

Organisers said the initiative has a “holistic attitude towards regeneration”, with an approach that is “long-term and multi-faceted, aiming to bring additional life and vibrancy back to the capital”. Read the whole story here.

Michael Ridley, front, second from right, and a group of Department of Environment officials and corporate sponsors celebrate the fundraising milestone.

A campaign to put one of Cayman’s most popular turtle nesting beaches under round-the-clock surveillance has hit its fundraising target.

Project Turtle Beach, led by Caymanian Michael Ridley, raised $15,500 to lease a high-tech camera to be used at a key nesting beach at Sand Hole Road in Boatswains Bay for the duration of turtle nesting season.

The camera, leased from the Security Centre, with internet capabilities supplied by Logic, will supply a 24/7 live feed to a security monitoring station, allowing for Department of Environment officers to be dispatched when a nesting turtle arrives at the beach.

The project seeks to assist the DoE in monitoring the beach and in providing additional protection from poaching. The camera will be installed in the coming days and is expected go live early next week.

Ridley said, “We are all very excited and confident that the data obtained from this project will prove invaluable in assisting the Department off Environment in their conservation efforts.” Read the whole story here.

More than 50 volunteers removed 540 pounds of rubbish from Sand Hole Beach in West Bay on Saturday morning as part of a Plastic Free Cayman clean-up.

The 53 volunteers were joined by Cayman Miss World contestants who helped with the clean-up. This year’s pageant has a strong emphasis on the environment.

Department of Environment Conservation Officer Casey Keller also came along to talk to the volunteers and educate them about turtle nesting.

Kerwin Ebanks of art collective STOAK’D also attended, to gather waste for an art project. Read the whole story here.

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Prince Charles unveil a plaque at Owen Roberts International Airport shortly after arriving in the Cayman Islands on 27 March. The short trip to Cayman was part of a Caribbean tour by the royal couple. - Photo: Stephen Clarke

Prince Charles and Camilla’s royal tour of the Caribbean, which included a whirlwind one-night stay in the Cayman Islands, cost British taxpayers almost half-a-million dollars, according to data released by the royal family.

The 11-day trip, which also included a historic visit to Cuba, was the most expensive in a long list of royal travel expenses collectively totalling just over £2.75 million, equivalent to around CI$2.9 million.

Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, who are responsible for the bulk of the royal family’s official overseas engagements, accounted for almost half of that total, according to data from the Sovereign Grant Report, which details annual UK government spending on the royals’ official duties.

The island-hopping trip, on the ministerial jet RAF Voyager, was requested by the UK government and also included stops in St. Lucia, Grenada, Barbados and Havana among others, costing a total of £416,576 (CI$438,000).

The report also highlights an increase in the royals’ “carbon footprint”, largely attributed to overseas travel.

Prince Charles has long used his platform to campaign for greater awareness of global climate change.

In a speech at Pedro St. James castle in Grand Cayman, the climax of the Caribbean trip, the prince delivered an urgent call to action over the “potentially catastrophic” impact of global warming.

The expenses report, which also keeps track of the royal family’s greenhouse gas emissions, indicates that CO2 emissions from business travel doubled from 1,687 tonnes in the 2017/18 financial year to 3,344 tonnes in the 2018/19 financial year. It attributes this to the use of the royal aircraft, which made five trips in the last financial year, compared with just one the previous year. Read the whole story here.

Longtime residents of Grand Cayman will already know how drastically the island has changed in recent decades, as construction and development have accelerated to keep pace with a growing population. Analysis from the Department of Environment can help quantify how drastic that change has been for the island’s wetlands.

In 1976, the western end of Grand Cayman was comprised largely of wetlands. From Prospect to West Bay, researchers recorded 5,330 acres of mangrove and sedge marsh wetlands that year. By 2013, that number had dropped 69% to around 1,633 acres.

But what does it mean to lose such habitat? In an age of rising sea levels and climate change, DoE Terrestrial Unit Manager Frederic Burton explained that the implications could be quite significant for Cayman.

“If sea level rise continues and the mangrove can’t keep pace, there is frankly very little we’d be able to do,” he said.

“We stand to lose a lot if the sea level comes up, and we need to be vocal about that internationally. We can’t stand up and speak about that if we aren’t doing anything about that ourselves.” Read the whole story here.

Views of Seven Mile Beach slowly disappearing, sustainable development calls ring out

Retired seaman Crosby Walton longs for the days when a trip up West Bay Road meant a clear view of the coastline.

At 83-years-old Mr. Walton has watched the number and height of buildings lining Cayman’s Seven Mile Beach strip increase; each helping to block his view of the sea. He’s hoping the trend does not continue.

“I think that will be the icing on the cake. That’s the last mistake that they would make, is to build those types of buildings in Cayman. We are an island, not a continent. We don’t need that kind of development,” said Mr. Walton.

His concerns are common on one side of the decades-long debate over development versus conservation.

While speaking at the annual Chamber of Commerce Economic Forum on Wednesday (19 June), Finance Minister Hon. Roy McTaggart reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to developing Cayman’s infrastructure. But he said it will be done in a sustainable way.

“Our government is committed to exercising prudent and responsible financial management, improving both the physical and institutional infrastructure,” said Minister McTaggart.

A Department of Environment map issued in 2013 shows 69% of Grand Cayman’s western wetland areas have been lost since 1969. Despite the vivid depiction of the loss of wetlands, Cayman’s pace of development shows no signs of slowing down. Recent talks of creating an iconic tower, which would soar above Cayman’s current building restrictions, have been met with opposition.

Chamber of Commerce President Chris Kirkconnell also spoke at the Chamber’s forum. He is against creating high-rise mixed-used developments. He said development must be sustainable while protecting Cayman’s natural resources.

Mr. Kirkconnell said, “We are already pushing our limits with our current building high restrictions, and Caymanians from all walks of life [think] that a 50, 80 or 100 story skyscraper planted directly in the heart of Seven Mile Beach, is not only not a sustainable way forward for our island, is not needed nor wanted by the larger community.” Read the whole story here.

The chair of the National Conservation Council, McFarlane Connolly, has said the NCC will not be accepting a document put forward by the Cayman Turtle Centre because it is not, as claimed, a species conservation plan but a tourism plan, made for the benefit of the Turtle Centre. In a clash between the council constituted under the conservation law and the commercial entity which still farms turtle for meat, the NCC has warned that the document which Cabinet has accepted falls foul of the law and poses a conflict of interest.

Last week the TCT issued a media release promoting the World Sea Turtle Day release of hatchlings on Governor’s Beach and the work at the facility. The release claimed that the CTC had created a species conservation plan for the green turtle, which the Cabinet had accepted. But when the National Conservation Council met Wednesday, Connolly noted a catalog of problems with the claims made by the Turtle Centre and its proposed plan.

“There is an obvious conflict of interest in a business developing a conservation plan to regulate and endorse its own activities,” Connolly stated. “These circumstances risk reputational damage to the Cayman Islands at both a local and an international level.” Read the whole story here.

Plans for a Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Beach Bay include two central buildings and a cluster of restaurants, pools and other amenities dotted around the sprawling oceanfront site.

The project has been in the discussion phase for several years, but detailed plans are now with the Central Planning Authority, which is expected to consider the application next month.

The drawings, reviewed by the Compass, show a ten-storey and a nine-storey building alongside a smaller arrivals area and a central restaurant. The taller buildings include set-backs from both ends that taper towards the upper floors.

The design also features separate pool and beachside rooms, as well as an Italian restaurant, sunset bar, spa buildings and a meditation pavilion.

The drawings show the amenities contained in several smaller buildings connected by pathways that snake across the landscaped site.

The application for the hotel, named St. James Point Hotel and Resort, is brought by Beach Bay Land Ltd.

It features 104,000 square feet of space for around 100 hotel rooms and 147,000 square feet of space for a similar number of residences. Read the whole story here.

The Port Authority will be responsible for policing snorkelling, diving and other marine activity in George Town harbour as part of a rezone of the coastal waters off Grand Cayman’s capital.

The change, which will be introduced alongside new legislation expanding and enhancing Cayman’s system of marine parks, means part of the harbour will no longer officially be designated as a marine park.

Joey Woods, director of the Port Authority, said the zoning change was for safety reasons, and would happen regardless of whether the cruise and cargo pier development plan went ahead. He said locals and tourists would still be able to swim, dive and snorkel from the shore and the majority of coral reef in the area would remain within the marine park zone.

A map of the port zone, provided by the Department of Environment, appears to show the Wreck of the Cali, a popular snorkelling area, accessible from Rackam’s and Balboa Beach on the waterfront, falls within the restricted area.

It’s not clear how that will impact water sports activity in that area. Read the whole story here.

The Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce has announced its line-up of speakers and panellists for the 2019 Chamber of Commerce Economic Forum at the Kimpton Seafire Resort & Spa on Wednesday, 19 June.

The forum, hosted in partnership with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, will feature presentations by industry leaders and government officials on key economic factors for Cayman’s business owners. Each presentation will be followed by a panel discussion, where the audience will be given the opportunity to ask the panellists questions.

Finance Minister Roy McTaggart will open the afternoon with an overview of the ‘state of the economy’ before Rosa Harris, director of the Department of Tourism, will give an update on Cayman’s tourism industry.

The new Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman strategy will be explained by WORC Director Sharon Roulstone, who will then, together with Dan Scott, chairman of the Education Council, and Stacy McAfee, president of UCCI, explore the implications of this strategy for Cayman’s current and future workforce.

“With this speaker line-up, we really hope to be able to discuss key issues and help our members plot out a sustainable course for their business’ future,” Chamber of Commerce President Chris Kirkconnell said. Read the whole story here.

As the threats and challenges presented by climate change and species extinction become increasingly apparent, environmental activists in the Cayman Islands are calling another public meeting this month to galvanise more support for local action.

The Cayman group of Protect our Future, a movement spearheaded by young people around the world, will be hosting the meeting. Everyone concerned about the impending climate crisis is urged to join them on 26 June in South Sound.

The meeting will cover general environmental issues in Cayman as well as specific areas of concern, such as the proposed cruise berthing project, the threat to Barkers by development and the government’s plans to gut the National Conservation Law. Read the whole story here.

Cruise Port Referendum volunteers Billy Adam and Laura Egglishaw collect signatures for the petition

The Elections Office has confirmed that the door to door verification process of the petition for a referendum on the cruise port project will start in around two weeks. But voters who have signed the petition can now visit the office to verify their signature during office hours with their voter card or another valid ID. Over the next two weeks, elections officials will review the petition and organise the signatures, based on districts and households, and begin the training to ensure the extra staff will be able to carry out the official process.

Various methods will be used to confirm that the number of signatures meets or exceeds the required 25% (5,289) of registered electors (21,155) in accordance with section 90 of the Constitution. All of the signatures will be checked to ensure they correspond with the electoral register. The manual checks with petitioners will be conducted to ensure the signatures were made by the voter, as claimed on the petition.

Elections Supervisor Wesley Howell urged all electors who signed to ensure that the office has their actual place of residence on the register. Read the whole story here.

The National Conservation Council has issued an interim directive to protect the critically endangered Grand Cayman False Foxglove (Agalinis kingsii) ahead of a conservation plan for the endemic flower on the brink of extinction and now threatened by development. The Department of Environment said this small flower is “a habitat specialist with an extremely restricted distribution.” Already on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species and a protected species under the local National Conservation Law, it is found only in two places on Grand Cayman, the National Trust’s Salina Reserve and on private land in Frank Sound.

The DoE said that a development proposal for the private land has created an urgent need to seek long-term protective measures for this uniquely Caymanian species.

The NCC informed Cabinet that it had approved an interim directive for the flower’s protection until the adoption of a conservation plan that the experts are now shaping. The key to the plant’s survival is preserving its unique habitat, which includes Cladium jamaicense, or cutting grass, and a particular species of ant that disperses the flower’s seeds.

In a document outlining the situation surrounding the False Foxglove, DoE Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie advised the council that the “impending loss of a significant portion of the entire global population of a species due to proposed development constitutes an urgent threat”, and justified the interim directive, which will offer protection of the flower and the relevant habitat from the immediate development threat. Read the whole story here.

Elections Officer Supervisor, Wesley Howell, officially accepts the People Initiated Referendum petition from Cruise Port Referendum group member, Michelle Lockwood (Photo by Jamie Hicks, GIS)

The Cayman Islands Elections Office met with the Cruise Port Referendum group on Wednesday, 12 June 2019) to officially accept the People Initiated Referendum petition signatures.

Elections Office Supervisor, Wesley Howell, along with Deputy Supervisors Suzanne Bothwell and Sheena Glasgow, were given the documents by leaders with the Cruise Port Referendum group. Head of the Governor’s Office, Matthew Forbes, was also present to accept a copy of the documents on behalf of the Governor.

The Elections Office staff will now analyse and collate the names of petitions and conduct an independent verification of the document’s signatures. Read the whole story here.

Members of the public watch as a released turtle makes it way to the sea (file photo)

The Cayman Turtle Centre is organising a special release tomorrow, Saturday 15 June, on Governor’s Beach to mark World Sea Turtle Day, which falls on Sunday, 16 June. Officials said the nesting season is “off to a good start” as more than 12,000 eggs have been collected at the centre.

All visitors to the centre are able to learn about sea turtles as well as other wildlife in a unique environment that is home to scientific research, conservation, education and distinctive tourism features, stated a press release from the Cayman Turtle Centre.

Dr Walter Mustin, the centre’s chief research and conservation officer, said, “This year’s turtle nesting season is off to a good start. To date we have collected over 12,000 eggs. Our breeding beach at the centre has seen nesting nearly every night for the last six weeks and as many as eight separate nests in one night.”

Noting that “this is an exciting time for the centre”, Mustin pointed to the government endorsing the centre’s Species Conservation Plan for Green Sea Turtle. Centre CEO Tim Adam said of the plan, “The Species Conservation Plan presented to caucus and later presented to Cabinet, was endorsed by the government. Cabinet issued a direction last August to the National Conservation Council to proceed with the steps necessary to adopt and subsequently bring this plan into force. Read the whole story here.

The Cayman Turtle Centre is pushing for the adoption of a species conservation plan it has produced for green sea turtles.

The centre, which is trying to transform its image from a tourist facility and turtle meat production farm to a research and conservation hub, has authored a protection plan for the iconic species.

Director Tim Adam said it was a “dynamic time” for the centre. Its captive breeding program, which involves the release of juvenile turtles and hatchlings into the wild, has been credited with kick-starting a resurgence of nesting sea turtles in Grand Cayman.

Though species conservation plans are usually produced by the Department of Environment under the direction of the National Conservation Council, the turtle centre announced this week that it had written its own plan for green sea turtles and is working on follow-up plans for other species. Read the whole story here.

One could almost hear the groans of dismay this week as Cayman’s gridlock-weary drivers learned that annual vehicle imports have doubled in the past decade, potentially adding thousands more cars, trucks and SUVs to our already-congested roads.

As the Compass reported, 4,457 vehicles were imported last year, up from 2,298 in 2009, with the most significant increases in the past five years – far surpassing the number of derelict vehicles that were processed at the George Town landfill over the same period of time.

It does not take a mathematician to calculate the net result: A proliferation of vehicles on Grand Cayman which, if not the source of our traffic woes, can certainly not be helping. Extrapolate the numbers a few years and it is not difficult to imagine a full-blown ‘car-tastrophe’, bringing to mind Will Rogers’ famous first law of holes: “If you find yourself in one, stop digging.”

Put another way, when your island already is struggling with overwhelming traffic congestion, perhaps you should consider importing fewer cars.

But, as several Compass readers pointed out in online comments to the news article, drivers, not cars, are at the heart of Grand Cayman’s traffic problem. As Jared Yochim wrote in one such comment, “Even if you own four vehicles, you can only drive on the roads with one at a time.” Read the whole story here.

At least a dozen vehicles are imported to the Cayman Islands every day, adding to the island’s growing traffic problems, Premier Alden McLaughlin has acknowledged.

More than 4,000 SUVs, trucks and motorcycles were shipped into the islands last year.

“We have to have a better transport system. We need other alternatives to everybody having to own a car,” the premier said.

McLaughlin was speaking in response to questions from George Town Central legislator Kenneth Bryan in the Legislative Assembly last week.

Bryan asked for figures on vehicle imports over the last decade and an explanation of what government was doing to ease congestion on Cayman’s crowded roads.

The statistics provided by the premier in response show that imports rose from 2,298 in 2009 to 4,457 last year.

The most significant increases have been in the past five years, with a growing number of people importing secondhand vehicles from Japan.

Figures from the Economics and Statistics Office, reviewed by the Cayman Compass, show that vehicles are not being scrapped at anything like the same rate.

In 2017, the most recent year for which figures were available, 1,235 derelict vehicles where processed at the dump. The numbers fluctuate wildly and in 2014 it was as low as 71. Read the whole story here.

Governor Martyn Roper, fourth from left, met with leaders of the cruise port referendum effort on Friday.

Opposition leader Arden McLean has joined calls for the cruise port project to be put on hold until a petition calling for a referendum on the development has been verified.

McLean said government’s decision to press on with negotiations was a “sucker punch” for democracy. And he warned that signing a contract, with the threat of a referendum looming, could expose government to the risk of financial penalties if the public ultimately rejects cruise berthing.

The campaign group pushing for a national vote on the issue claims to have signatures from 25 percent of the electorate – the required threshold to trigger a people-initiated referendum. Representatives met with Governor Martyn Roper on Friday, and plan to submit their petition to the Elections Office next week.

The governor, in a brief statement following the meeting, said his office would play an important role in the verification process.

“It is an important achievement to collect over 5,300 signatures,” he wrote on Twitter. Read the whole story here.

The Central Planning Authority announced approval of the construction of a new eco-resort on Barefoot Beach in East End on Thursday.

The NCB Group resort would spread 83 single-storey units over 10 acres of land off the Queen’s Highway.

“I think it’s about time we get something on this site,” said Central Planning Authority Chairman A.L. Thompson. “It’s been talked about for years.”

NCB Group project manager Mark Sorrill, described the proposed $20 million resort as low impact. He noted that the land had been zoned for a 550-room hotel, but the company was only building 83.

“What we’re striving for is a new type of resort that is called in the business ‘experiential,’” Sorrill told the board. The completed project would “allow a more authentic experience of a natural site”, he said. Read the whole story here.

Cayman’s endemic ghost orchid, found in the
Ironwood Forest in George Town

At an educational meeting hosted by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands Wednesday night, attendees were urged to contact their MLAs and lobby them about concerns over mounting threats to the environment, especially from development, and to offer their support for the National Conservation Law. Many people in the audience felt that there is no way to prevent the onslaught on the environment, but Trust Director Nadia Hardie and former minister Wayne Panton encouraged them to contact their MLAs and tell them that they want more, not less, protection for the environment.

As she opened the session, Hardie said the meeting was organised because of concerns raised by Trust members about the conservation law review and fears that government is seeking to water down protections, especially regarding the need for environmental impact assessments (EIAs) ahead of major projects, and to address some of the misconceptions and inaccuracies in the public domain about the legislation.

Gina Ebanks-Petrie, the director of the Department of Environment, gave a clear and comprehensive overview of the law, explaining various provisions and powers. It is a conservation law, not an environmental law, so there are many areas, such as air pollution, that it does not cover, she explained. Read the whole story here.

It is now clear that registered voters in the Cayman Islands may have a chance to have an official say on the divisive topic on whether government should move ahead with its plans for the cruise berthing project in George Town.

However, there have been those who have expressed unease at the need for the Supervisor of Elections to verify each signature on the petition. Some have indicated a fear of victimisation but it is understood the process is to ensure everything is legally sound heading into the vote.

Getting the required number of signatures does not automatically mean campaigners have stopped government from moving forward. What happens now is that there will likely be a vote on whether the project should advance. Government, however, will be the ones setting the tone for any such vote. They will determine the exact wording of the question to be posed at a referendum.

With that explainer out of the way, we return to the right to vote. In prior editorials, we have stressed the importance of registering to have your name on the electoral register. A case like this shows that there is the potential to be called upon to have a say on matters of national importance aside from the four-year election cycle.

The referendum will not only be for those who oppose the project in its current form but for those who are also in support. Both sides have the right to let their vote be counted. Staying away because you don’t agree with the campaigners is the coward’s way out and cheapens the process.

We continue to watch developments and encourage everyone eligible to vote to turn out on Referendum Day and let their voices be heard. Democracy is, after all, not a spectator sport.

One of the Cayman Islands’ most popular turtle nesting beaches will be put under round-the-clock surveillance in a pilot project to help tackle poachers.

Hi-tech security cameras will be installed at ‘Turtle Beach’ in West Bay for four months, starting 1 July. The feed will be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week by a US-based security company.

The project is the brainchild of Mike Ridley, a Caymanian based in Miami, Florida. He has raised nearly $12,000 towards the $16,500 cost of implementing the programme.

He hopes the system, which alerts the Department of Environment any time a turtle emerges from the ocean to dig its nest, will help enhance the island-wide monitoring of nesting sea turtles in the Cayman Islands.

He believes it will also deter poachers, allow environmental officials to protect nests and deliver valuable data to Cayman’s conservation programmes. Read the whole story here.

A free educational session hosted by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands will answer questions about the National Conservation Law.

The event includes a presentation by Department of Environment Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie and a question-and-answer panel with National Trust Executive Director Nadia Hardie. Members of the National Conservation Council will also be in attendance.

“A number of our members have approached us with questions concerning the law and how the proposed amendments could potentially affect the future environmental well-being of the Cayman Islands,” Hardie said.

“This event will give us an opportunity to collectively discuss the law prior to public consultation,” she added.

The event is open to the public. The session runs from 5:30-7:30pm Wednesday, 5 June at the Family Resource Centre at 87 Mary Street. Registration starts at 5:30 and the event starts at 6pm.

DoE shark project officer Johanna Kohler hauls the
dead Caribbean reef shark closer to shore to examine it.
– PHOTO: DOE

The Department of Environment (DoE) is urging fishermen to be more considerate if sharks are caught on their line.

This comes as two sharks were found dead last month (May) in what the DoE called violent acts by fishermen. Department of Environment Legislation and Coordination manager John Bothwell is urging patience from fishermen.

“On the 16th of May, we had one adult Caribbean Reef shark that was found dead in North Side by the Babylon dive site area. That shark appeared to have had a hook in it that was cut out and then part of the jaw removed. On May 28th, we had another adult Caribbean Reef shark that was found at the slipway at Northwest Point. That one appeared to of been stabbed in the head by a fishing knife and gutted before it was thrown back out. There’s really no need for this kind of violence to the animals,” said Mr. Bothwell.

According to DoE last year six sharks were killed, so far for this year, the DoE has confirmed seven shark deaths including one of their own. “On Little Cayman this year, we had either a Blacktip or a Reef shark that was found dead and it was actually one of our animals that we tagged several years previously,” said Mr. Bothwell.

All sharks species are protected under Cayman’s National Conservation Law since April 2015. Mr. Bothwell said if one catches a shark, just release it. “The safest thing is just cutting the line, or clip in the leader as closest to the fish as you feel comfortable.” According to National Geographic, an estimated 100 million sharks are killed every year illegally. Mr. Bothwell said there is only one culprit to blame. “It’s not much else that actually threatens adult Caribbean Reef sharks except people. This is why we keep hammering on about the fisherman to leave them alone, it’s because they are the only threat to the sharks,” said Mr. Bothwell. Anyone caught harming a shark in Cayman waters faces fines of up to $500,000 and four years in jail.

The Department of Environment has begun its annual survey of the conch population in local waters. Each year, a survey team monitors around one hundred different 24-square-metre sites in various locations where conchs are counted and measured. The data collected is then used to assess the current state of the population. John Bothwell, a senior research officer with the DoE, explained that concerns were raised back in the 1980’s that the once abundant population of conch was dropping, as was the number of lobster.

Speaking to Cayman 27 recently, he explained that the seasonal catch limits were introduced in an effort to reverse the decline. While the DoE has had some success with the introduction of marine protections and catch limits and halting the decline, the situation remains precarious for the conch. Read the whole story here.

National Trust & DoE to host educational session to understand the National Conservation Law

The National Trust invites its members and the general public to attend a free educational session ‘Understanding the National Conservation Law’ on Wednesday, June 5.

The event will include a presentation by Department of Environment Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie, followed by a Q&A panel with National Trust Executive Director Nadia Hardie, and persons sitting on the current National Conservation Council (NCC), who will collectively discuss the overall purpose of the National Conservation Law (NCL) and its goals. The event is in response to a large number of National Trust members requesting more information about the NCL and expressing a need for a clearer understanding of how the NCC currently operates.

“A number of our members have approached us with questions concerning the Law and how the proposed amendments could potentially affect the future environmental well-being of the Cayman Islands,” said Nadia Hardie for the National Trust. “This event will give us an opportunity to collectively discuss the Law prior to public consultation. The event, however, is not exclusive to National Trust members; anyone who wants to further understand the Law who may not be a member of the Trust is welcome to attend.” Click here for details and the rest of the story.

Dozens of students from several schools across the Cayman Islands joined with other young people around the world Friday in another global demonstration about the environment, urging their politicians to take action on green issues and protect their futures. Organised in conjunction with Plastic Free Cayman, the demonstration also drew attention to other urgent issues impacting the local environment, such as concerns over the cruise berthing project and saving Barkers, and the students left no doubt that they expect more from local politicians.

With the political will to address these issues here in the Cayman Islands woefully inadequate, the students say they are not prepared to accept the status quo and believe the government is not doing anywhere near enough to protect their future.

While Environment Minister Dwayne Seymour did address the students about the government’s plans for recycling plastic, he ignored the many other concerns the young people have, including damage to the reefs from the cruise project, over-development, the threat to Barkers and the failure to address the dump.

As the younger generation leads the charge on climate change, Richard Weber, a student from Cayman International School who is now 18 years old and a newly registered voter, said his generation is deeply concerned about the utter failure of the current generation of politicians to get to grips with the climate crisis.

Inspired by the Extinction Rebellion demonstration in the UK and the Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg (16), who started the school strikes to draw attention to the failure of governments around the world to curb damaging human activity, Weber said Cayman needs its own new green deal. Read the whole story here.

The stench coming from many of Cayman’s beaches these days is horrible. That was the reaction from Education Minister Juliana O’Connor-Connolly, as the stench of rotting sargassum wafted through the Cayman Islands.

The latest influx comes less than two weeks after Tim Austin, deputy director of the Department of Environment, said the issue was not going away.

While a potential nuisance on land when it washes up on our beaches in massive quantities, floating rafts of sargassum in the open ocean form rich ecosystems that provide critical habitats for a diversity of marine species...

Read the whole story here. Read about the cause in the UNEP White Paper published in 2018.

A group of retired Caymanians is taking government to court over its refusal to officially register some 200 beach access paths.

The ‘Concerned Citizens Group’ argues in its judicial review application that Registrar of Lands Sophia Williams was wrong not to register the rights of way, and that she was also wrong not to refer the matter to the Grand Court when the group appealed her decision. Attorney General Sam Bulgin also gave the registrar faulty legal advice, according to the judicial review application, which was filed by retired Caymanians Alice Mae Coe, Annie Multon and Ezmie Smith.

The group further alleges in its judicial review application that government is refusing to register the beach access paths because “government would like to retain a free hand in allocating lands to investors and other people without having to deal with well-protected rights of way”. Read the whole story here.

Members of the National Conservation Law Review Committee at their first meeting last week (Photo by GIS)

The National Conservation Law Review Committee, led by chair the Premier, Hon. Alden McLaughlin, met for the first time last week at the Government Administration Building.

At the start of the meeting, the Department of the Environment provided a presentation on the law and answered questions from committee members.

Members discussed the need for a review of the law and agreed that the Terms of Reference (ToR) should be sufficiently broad to allow for wide ranging discussion as the committee does its work. The ToR will be settled at the next meeting.

Premier McLaughlin noted that while Government has its own concerns with certain aspects of the law, the expectation is that the committee would discuss these alongside any public concerns. Read the whole story and list of members here.

Campaigners behind local activist group Plastic Free Cayman are calling on the public to join them in a peaceful protest next week on the steps of the government building in an effort to highlight the growing problem of plastic pollution and climate change. The local NGO, which has been campaigning with some success for a ban on single-use plastic and encouraging the private sector to cut plastic use, is keen to see even more action. The call comes just as almost every country in the world, though not the US, has signed up to a legally-binding plan to cut plastic waste.

The United Nations announced that 186 countries reached an agreement last Friday to monitor and track movements of plastic waste outside their borders. The deal will see a better regulated global trade in plastic, which is currently polluting the oceans as well as natural land habitats and entangling wildlife with deadly results...

...Plastic Free Cayman said in a FB post that the peaceful demo is scheduled for Friday 24 May on the steps of the Government Administration Building on Elgin Avenue, George Town [at 12:20pm]. Read the whole story here.

Coral reefs might have an inherent beauty and value to wildlife and marine ecosystems that’s priceless, but if we did have to put a dollar amount on their value, it turns out they’re worth quite a bit of money.

That money isn’t coming from tourism either, it’s coming from the ecosystem services coral reefs provide protecting us from floods by acting as buffers that reduce the power of waves, which significantly reduce flooding and erosion.

According to a study conducted by researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), The Nature Conservancy and the University of California-Santa Cruz, overall that flood protection is worth more than $1.8 billion in the U.S. and its territories. Read the whole story here.

Without a dramatic course correction, 1 million species are at risk of extinction, according to a United Nations-backed panel of scientists.

The animals and plants at risk include many beloved to our Cayman Islands, including Hawksbill turtles, Nassau grouper, blue iguanas, parrot fish, eagle rays and sharks.

More than a third of all marine mammals around the world; more than 40% of amphibian species. The prospect is — or ought to be — unthinkable.

The idea is particularly jarring in Cayman, home to many rare and unique natural resources. In fact, the Department of Environment told the Compass last week that almost half of 415 endemic plant species are critically endangered – primarily because of human activities.

The decline in biodiversity on our small islands and around the world is serious business, and not only because tourists flock to our shores to experience our peaceful beaches and beautiful reefs. In many ways, Cayman provides the perfect microcosm of the global situation. Our population growth, and our struggles to find the ideal balance between development and preservation, are a case study in miniature of what the report’s authors observe. They point to overfishing, pollution, spread of invasive species and development all as contributors to the problem. Read the whole story here.

This artist’s concept shows the design for this year’s Flowers Sea Swim T-shirt, which will be made using recycled plastic.

Departing from ongoing efforts to remove plastic from Cayman’s beaches, officials with the Flowers Sea Swim plan to introduce more plastic waste to the beach once swimmers cross the finish line of the well-known, open-water event.

This year’s participation jersey is, for the first time, being made of material developed from re-purposed plastic.

Anup Itwar, a former sales and marketing representative for the Flowers Group, is volunteering as the Flowers Sea Swim event coordinator. He said UK-based Scimitar Sports proposed making this year’s shirts from the kinds of bottles often plucked from the sand during beach clean-ups.

“It’s a new line for them,” Itwar said, adding that Scimitar has been supplying the sea swim’s shirts for more than 10 years. “We wanted to be one of the first customers.” Read the whole story here.

The red lines show the 5.17 acre of land beside Malportas Pond which the National Trust has bought. – Map: Courtesy of the National Trust

Birdwatchers and nature lovers may soon be able to get a little closer to the winged inhabitants and visitors of a North Side lagoon after the National Trust purchased land bordering Malportas Pond.

The trust, which bought 5.17 acres of shoreland at the site, plans to open a new gated bird sanctuary overlooking the pond.

According to the Trust, Malportas Pond is one of a series of landlocked saline lagoons throughout the Cayman Islands, which are vitally important feeding sites for a range of resident and migratory herons, egrets, waders, ducks and other water birds.

The pond is owned by the Crown and forms part of the Central Mangrove Wetland, an internationally recognised ‘Important Bird Area’. It is considered by bird-watchers to be a hot spot for shore birds, herons and ducks in the Cayman Islands.

“Our vision is to create a gated bird sanctuary, complete with a bird hide, interpretive signage and telescopes for use by the public,” said Nadia Hardie, executive director of the National Trust in a press release. “We hope to create a flagship attraction for the enjoyment of both visitors and locals.” Read the whole story here.

Last week I was invited for a tour of Bodden Town Solar Farm by CIFMA (Cayman Island Facilities Management Association) and joined some 25 of their members who were as curious as I was to see what a solar farm actually looks like. The facility, which was built by US firm Entropy, opened in 2017, but the company pulled out last year stating that it was not a successful investment. In December 2018, BMR, a Richard Branson company that runs clean energy projects in the Caribbean, acquired the company from Entropy.

The array of 21,690 solar panels is impressive, but what was really interesting was a briefing from Pip Decker, senior vice president at BMR Energy and his team. Entropy had stated that the plant produced less energy than planned, but BMR have made big changes using technology to optimise the power produced. Richard Branson is committed to tackling climate change – he says he wants to save Necker [Island] from disappearing – but the message from BMR is that his investments have to be profitable. That has not always been the case with solar farms, and lessons have been learned. For BMR, technology is clearly the key to lowering costs and improving efficiency.

The company’s operations in the Caribbean are run remotely using SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisitions), a computer system that monitors every aspect of the facilities’ performance, cutting labour costs and minimising downtime. Where local intervention is required a local firm, Pro Solar, are able to step in immediately. Spare parts are kept on island so there are no costly delays in generating electricity. A weather station monitors conditions which are then compared to actual generation performance, spotting problems such as heavy dust on the panels from the nearby quarry.

Hurricane protection is vital to protect the investment: a solar farm BMR acquired in St. Croix had been 90% destroyed in Hurricane Irma. The solar panels in Bodden Town are not secured by screw piles, but grounded in troughs filled with concrete and rebar that are designed to withstand winds of 150 mph. Every screw in all the panels is replaced when there are signs of corrosion. Panels are not tilted at the optimum 15 degrees for generation, but at 10 degrees to minimise wind lift in storms. It’s not just protecting the investment – it lowers the high insurance premium and so lowers operating cost.

The threats from climate change loom ever larger and low-lying islands like Cayman are especially vulnerable. The UK intergovernmental panel on climate change states that we have to halve CO2 emissions in the next eleven years if we are to avoid catastrophic climatic consequences. The Bodden Town plant only generates about 5% of the power CUC uses. We are not doing enough. We must hope that companies like BMR have the right business model that will enable Cayman to push forward much faster if we are to reach our National Energy Policy goal of 70% renewables by 2037.

You know it must be springtime in the Cayman Islands when the first turtle nests are recorded on the islands’ beaches.

It will likely be another two months before the hatchlings break free from their shells and make their way to the sea, but nesting season is officially under way after the discovery of a nest on the south coast of Grand Cayman on Friday, April 12.

Cayman’s nesting sea turtles have been brought back from the brink of extinction over the past two decades. But the population remains fragile, and environment officials and volunteers maintain a vigil throughout nesting season, which typically runs to November, to protect against poaching and other threats.

DoE research officer Janice Blumenthal said 2019 will be the 21st year of the Department of Environment’s beach monitoring programme.

There were 406 nests recorded across all three islands during the 2018 season, compared with just 15 when surveys began in the Sister Islands in 1998, and 23 when the project was extended to Grand Cayman in 1999. Read the whole story here.

Volunteers will be collecting signatures this Saturday for the Cruise Port Referendum campaign

Organisers and volunteers coordinating a petition to trigger a people-initiated referendum on the government’s controversial proposed cruise berthing project have now verified the names and voting status of almost 4,300 signatures on the petition and are confident that the remaining 1,000 will soon be confirmed, paving the way for a national vote. Cruise Port Referendum activists said that over 82% of the required signatures under section 70 of the Constitution to mandate a referendum have been checked. But with more signatures sill to verify and a steady stream of people still signing, campaigners are now very confident the vote will happen.

“We fully expect the petition to exceed the number required, 5,288 verified signatures, in a matter of weeks. Volunteers remain dedicated to the collection of signatures on the class two petition and giving the opportunity for the public to make an informed decision,” campaigners said in a release confirming the verification of the names now collected.

In order to trigger a referendum the campaigners must secure a full quarter of the electorate to demonstrate that the national poll would not be for spurious reasons of interest to only a small section of the community. Read the whole story here.

Chamber of Commerce Earth Day volunteers collect trash in Bodden Town on Saturday. - Photo: Jewel Levy

Nearly 2,000 volunteers in 125 teams spent Saturday morning removing tons of garbage from the roadsides and beaches of the Cayman Islands.

The Chamber of Commerce Earth Day Clean-up brought out volunteers from all walks of life, including company CEOs, business owners, school children and families.

“We had 125 clean-up teams at the very end and again it was another outstanding success,” said Chamber CEO, Wil Pineau, of the annual event.

By mid-morning, much of the work had been done and neatly piled garbage bags could be seen on the sides of roads from North Side to West Bay, awaiting pick-up. Pineau said the Department of Environmental Health would be collecting the bags this week from all the sites. Read the whole story here.

Prince Charles pets Peter the blue iguana at the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park on Thursday. - Photo: Alvaro Serey

Prince Charles has urged the Cayman Islands to help “lead the world” in the global fight against climate change and other environmental threats.

Speaking at the conclusion of the royal visit on Thursday, the Prince of Wales delivered an impassioned call to action for the territory to do everything in its power to protect and preserve its natural environment.

The prince’s comments came as the Cayman Islands government announced an expansion to the island’s marine park system, vastly increasing the size of the areas protected from over-fishing and other threats.

Speaking in front of Cayman’s leaders and hundreds of well-wishers during a reception at Pedro St. James, Prince Charles recalled visiting Cayman as a young naval officer in 1973. He said the island should be proud of the progress it had made in the four decades since that time and was now punching “above its weight” globally as an important financial services centre and major tourism destination.

He said, “With all of this rapid development there is, it seems to me, an ever greater need to protect your natural environment. Read the whole story here.

Richard Weber, the Youth Parliament’s minister of health, spoke in favor of a resolution limiting the use of single-use plastics.

The voices of Cayman’s future stepped up to lead the Legislative Assembly Monday, when the 12th Youth Parliament of the Cayman Islands took place to commemorate Commonwealth Day.

The event, which invites high school and college students to mirror the Legislative Assembly and debate issues facing this jurisdiction, gave a sneak preview of what tomorrow’s leaders may sound like.

Barbara Conolly, Ministry of Education councilor and George Town South MLA, gave introductory comments Monday and noted that the Youth Parliament had its highest ever turnout – 27 youth representatives – with 16 members of the delegation being young women.

Women represented the Youth Parliament in positions of leadership, such as premier, speaker of the house, deputy speaker and deputy leader of the opposition, and Ms. Conolly was thrilled by the diversity.

“As we strive for gender equality in the world, let us commend these young women in the roles they have chosen in this debate,” said Ms. Conolly to the Youth Parliament. “You are entering an exciting period of history where the world expects balance. We notice its absence and celebrate its presence.”

Students from John Gray, Clifton Hunter and Prospect Primary schools filled the gallery on Monday, as the Youth Parliament debated a regulation on the usage of plastic bags and the need for implementation of a juvenile detention and youth rehabilitation center for the Cayman Islands. Read the whole story here.

Tarpon Lake in Little Cayman is one of 10 sites earmarked for extra protection by the National Conservation Council. - Photo: Jenny Gabruch

The National Conservation Council is seeking $10 million in new funding to help buy environmentally significant land to protect from development and other threats.

The council approved 10 new nominations for pieces of land to be designated as terrestrial protected areas under the National Conservation Law at its meeting on Wednesday.

Those will now go to Cabinet for approval, along with a request for funding from the Environmental Protection Fund to help buy some of the parcels currently in private ownership.

The parcels include a two-acre section of the Lower Valley Forest, part of the Central Mangrove Wetlands and the Western Mangrove Cays in Grand Cayman, Tarpon Lake in Little Cayman, and an expansion to the Eastern Lighthouse Park in Cayman Brac. Read the whole story here.

The Department of Environment has said that removing more than four acres of turtle grass in Barkers will adversely affect essential habitat for protected species, that it will destroy live coral and lead to beach erosion, among many other problems. Following comments by the tourism minister that a controversial coastal works application by the owner of Calico Jack’s bar might prove “successful”, despite local objections, the DoE has published its scientific findings, which make it clear the project would have a very serious impact on the marine habitat and beach, and include detailed recommendations about why the application should be refused.

During an appearance on Radio Cayman on Monday, Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell said that the application to develop in Barkers, which was made by Handel Whittaker, was a good example of people wanting to develop in the right way, as he hinted that government backed the project and all parties were looking for a way to make it happen.

But the DoE’s review of the formal coastal works application indicates that this project would not only pose a significant threat to the environment in and around the site, which is a marine replenishment zone, but that the aim of creating a crystal clear sandy bathing area was fruitless. Read the whole story here.

A CCMI survey indicates the coral reefs in Grand Cayman are in fair condition. - Photo: Mark Muckenfuss

The Cayman Islands’ coral reefs are in fair condition according to a recent survey by the Central Caribbean Marine Institute. They actually earned a “fair-plus,” which is a middle-of-the-road rating on a scale that runs from very good to critical.

And while Grand Cayman’s reefs are slightly less healthy than those of its Sister Islands, CCMI spokeswoman Kate Holden said, “It’s not all doom and gloom. We can correctively protect the reef.”

The institute will detail the most recent data on the status of local reefs during a lecture on Feb. 28 at 5:45 p.m. at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands, kicking off a yearlong education program to bring more attention to sustaining and improving the condition of the offshore environment.

The Healthy Reefs campaign will be targeted at students, teachers, water sports and dive operators, tourists and the community at large, encouraging people to learn more about Cayman’s reefs. It’s the first in what Ms. Holden expects will be a series of annual campaigns.

“At this stage, it’s just getting people to understand, ‘Why does this matter?’” Ms. Holden said. “We will work with professional conservation managers and regional stakeholders.”

FlowFour lectures are planned over the course of the year. The next will be tied to Earth Day, April 22, and a June lecture will be given from an underwater site, via CCMI’s Reefs Go Live program, which allows audiences to interact with scientists during a live dive.

In addition, posters and informational material will be distributed at dive shops and hotels throughout the islands.

The public will be encouraged to help by doing such things as using reef-friendly sunscreen – some sunscreens contain compounds that are deadly to coral – avoid using plastics when possible and protect sea life in other ways.

“Always follow local sustainable fishing guidelines,” Ms. Holden said, whether actively fishing or just consuming seafood. “From a local perspective, we need to protect reef species. Given the current pressures, we need to be very careful.”

The Feb. 28 lecture will focus on the results of a July 2018 survey. A team of six divers surveyed 25 reefs across the Cayman Islands, looking at eight sites on the Sister Islands and nine on Grand Cayman. CCMI surveyed the same sites in 1999, allowing scientists to compare two “snapshots” in time. The presenters will look at the changes that have occurred during that period.

Ms. Holden said the campaign will give Cayman residents a clearer understanding about the importance of the islands’ reefs.

“The coral reefs are critical to livelihoods on the island states,” she said, “particularly tourism.”

She hopes people will not be satisfied with having fair or fair-plus reefs around the islands.

“They could very easily move to poor,” she said. “We need to protect them to maintain the [current condition] or even improve it.”

More than 20 million tons of electronic waste is produced every year worldwide, that’s according to the Institution of Physics.

One local business owner said Cayman is indeed contributing to the problem with tv’s, computers and other items found thrown in the trash. Around 17,967 pounds of electronic waste was shipped from Cayman’s shores in January and Owner of E-waste Cayman Islands Erdmon McCoy said some electronics contain dangerous chemical and it can make you sick.

“The older CRTV’s holds mercury and lead in it and if it’s not properly disposed of it can leach into the environment and into the ground causing health issues like cancer multiple respiratory system problems, it’s just a wide range of health problems that it can cause,” said Mr. McCoy. That’s why he’s encouraging people to dispose of their electronic waste responsibly. Read the whole story here.

Time to don your fanciest chapeau and head to Grand Old House for the annual Hatitude brunch, being held on Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

This stylish fundraiser for the National Trust, which is a family-friendly event, is a wonderfully social affair and allows guests to put their best hats forward.

The theme for this year’s brunch is “Birds of a Feather.” Attendees are invited to draw inspiration from wild birds – from the splendor of the Cayman parrot to the elegance of the great blue heron and the spirited rooster – when selecting or creating hats and attire.

Highlights of the afternoon include a full brunch menu by Grand Old House and unlimited bubbles, courtesy of Jacques Scott. There will also be the “Most Hatitude” male, female and kid’s competition, a rum-tasting bar and cigar lounge, as well as the Little Hatitude kids’ crafts corner and a raffle.

Proceeds from Hatitude, the National Trust’s largest fundraising event of the year, will enable the Trust to continue its work to protect Cayman’s natural environment. The cash also goes toward preserving buildings of historic importance, and providing hikes, tours, workshops and activities for visitors, residents and local students. Read the whole story here.

Mario Rankin, one of the organisers of the Vision 2020 event, with CIS student Richard Weber

With the coming together of several environmental activist groups at the weekend, it is becoming clear that a genuine green movement is now emerging in the Cayman Islands. The grassroots organisations include the campaign to trigger a people’s referendum on the cruise berthing project, the movements to save specific areas like Smith Cove and now Barkers, the work of the long-established Concerned Citizens group, which is focused on beach access rights. They are all now part of a growing awareness locally, across generations, that conserving the environment and changing the way we approach development and growth must be part of the Cayman Islands’ future.

More than 200 people visited the South Sound Civic Centre for the Vision 2020 event on Saturday, which was described as a “huge success” by organisers, where presentations on a range of interconnected environmental and social challenges were discussed among a diverse cross-section of Cayman society.

Young and old, Caymanians and expatriates, all of whom want to see a more sustainable future for the islands, came together to discuss how the environment and the protection of Cayman’s natural resources needs to be at the centre of Cayman’s future. Read the whole story here.

Former environment minister Wayne Panton has expressed concerns that the proposed cruise berthing development in George Town and the number of passengers needed to support it could cause serious conflict within Cayman’s tourism product. Panton is well respected for his knowledge of conservation issues and, as a Cabinet minister in the last administration, steered through the National Conservation Law. He told CNS he had reservations about the proposed dock but he has not yet signed the referendum petition, despite being sympathetic to the public desire to have their say on the issue.

Panton lost his seat at the last elections, which many believe was because of his support for human rights and treating the LGBT community with equity and dignity, but he is still a member of the party he helped to found. However, he has largely stayed under the political radar for the last two years.

But this week the former offshore lawyer, who is chair of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, did weigh in on the debate that is dominating the public discourse. Speaking to CNS, Panton said he recognises a number of challenges presented by the project, as well as the wider implications facing Cayman’s environment in general.

The former environment minister has not lost any of his interest in conservation and the need to protect the Cayman Islands’ precious natural resources, but it is not just the environmental issues presented by the proposed project that he has concerns about. He said it could prove to be a mistake to grow cruise tourism so much that it conflicts with Cayman’s overnight tourism and there needs to be a balance between the two.

“I have concerns about capacity,” he said. “There is a finite number of visitors we can cope with before we create a conflict between the tourism strategies.” Read the whole story here.

A record 113 stingrays were counted at the North Sound Sandbar during the latest census, according to the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation.

Despite the encouraging news, researchers remain concerned about increasing boat traffic, overcrowding and the mishandling of rays at the popular attraction.

Mr. Harvey’s research organization has been carrying out population surveys at the Sandbar since 2008, and conducting biannual head counts since 2012.

Louisa Gibson of the foundation said this year’s total was the highest ever recorded. She said numbers had dipped as low as 57 in 2013, and credited the introduction of the National Conservation Law, which includes protection for rays, as one of the key reasons for the resurgence.

Before that she said there had been incidents of people fishing or stealing the rays and selling them to attractions. Read the whole story here.

Governor Martyn Roper, seventh from left in second row, was part of the volunteer group that helped clean up Barefoot Beach on Saturday.

Governor Martyn Roper got down and dirty on Saturday, lending a hand in the latest beach cleanup sponsored by Plastic Free Cayman and Red Sail Sports.

The event drew more than 70 volunteers who scoured the North Side beach, removing more than 900 pounds of trash, 90 percent of which was plastics, organizers said.

In addition to the governor, Miss World Cayman Kelsie Woodman-Bodden, and Casson Trenor, an American environmental activist, were also part of the cleanup crew.

Plastic Free Cayman had student experts on hand to educate volunteers on the dangers of plastic pollution and to promote the organization’s 345 Pledge, a staged approach to observing more ecologically friendly practices.

Representatives from KAABOO Cayman set up their own information area, promoting sustainability initiatives and recruiting volunteers to help with recycling efforts during the upcoming two-day music festival, Feb. 15-16. KAABOO officials recently announced they will have separate bins at the event for recyclable trash. Read the whole story here.

Record-breaking amounts of sargassum in the Caribbean: what is it and where is it coming from?

Sargassum is a unique group of marine plants, brown algae that are kept afloat using small air-filled floats attached to the stalks. Not all sargassum species float on the surface, some remain attached to the reef and the tiny floats help the plant stay closer to the sunlight. The two main floating species are Sargassum natans and Sargassum fluitans. It reproduces by fragmentation and the growing plants can come together to form huge floating mats of brown weed that drift through the Caribbean during the warm summer months. Much of it is blown ashore during our winter storms. In 2011 there was a massive bloom of these plants, and every year since there has been more sargassum than usual in the Caribbean. In the last year we have seen unprecedented amounts of sargassum throughout the region...

Most sargassum used to originate in the Gulf of Mexico, and would be caught in the normal currents that would take it out into the North Atlantic in an area known as the Sargasso Sea, 700 miles wide and 2000 miles long. This sea is not bound by land, but by ocean currents that form a swirling gyre, keeping the sargassum together. Christopher Columbus apparently thought he had found land when he encountered it on his voyage in 1492. Today it is also a trap for oceanic pollution: there are an estimated 200,000 pieces of trash per square kilometer and it has now been dubbed the "North Atlantic Garbage Patch."

But what about the recent sargassum blooms in the Caribbean? After the 2011 bloom, scientists at the University of South Florida Optical Oceanography Laboratory found that this new sargassum had broader leaves than the usual varieties, and have been trying to trace it back to it's source using satelite imagery. For the record-breaking 2018 sargassum bloom they found it was coming from the south, as far away as Brazil, an area that had never before seen such large amounts of sargassum. Research is being done to see if this new strain entering the Caribbean actually represents a new species of sargassum. Read the whole story here.

BMR Energy has acquired a 5-megawatt solar plant in Bodden Town from Entropy Cayman. The plant is the only commercial-scale solar facility on island.

The Virgin Group company, owned by Richard Branson, develops and operates clean energy projects in the Caribbean and Latin America. It will take over all operations of the solar facility, as well as the power purchase agreement under which the electricity generated at the 22-acre plant is sold to Caribbean Utilities Company, according to a press release issued by BMR.

The Bodden Town Solar Farm is located in a former quarry and has 21,690 photovoltaic panels. It started operations in July 2017.

“We are pleased to establish operations in the Cayman Islands and contribute to its transition to renewable energy,” said Bruce Levy, CEO of BMR Energy. “Our team is looking forward to driving facility operations to boost efficiency to deliver as much clean energy as we can for the community and [we] look forward to expanding our Cayman operations in the future.” Read the whole story here.

The governor has said the government plans for a cruise berthing and cargo facility in George Town is a matter for the elected officials and he will not interfere with the current process. Martyn Roper told CNS last week that this is an economic policy issue devolved to the local government, and while he has responsibility for good governance, at this point the project was going through the process ,which would be overseen by the Office of the Auditor General. The governor said he was “comfortable” that the proper process was being followed and he had faith in the auditor.

Roper stated that where possible, the UK believes in the autonomy of the territories regarding economic and domestic policy and he did not wish to comment on the project at this stage.

He added that environmental issues were very important to the UK but he had been assured that the necessary environmental impact assessments have been and will be conducted and it was important for the governments of the territories to think strategically and long term about their economies. Read the whole story here.

The National Conservation Law marked its 5th anniversary on Thursday still intact, despite ongoing concerns over government plans to review and water down the legislation, which was originally steered through the Legislative Assembly with unanimous support on 13 December 2013. Wayne Panton, the former environment minister, the only minster to ever hold the portfolio who was not only passionate but knowledgeable about the environment, fought hard and made compromises to ensure the law’s passage, which resulted in around 3,500 acres of important habitat now being protected.

However, the legislation remains under threat as the government still appears to want to review the law with the intention of undermining some of the provisions that are seen in some quarters as a barrier to development, though in reality the law has made no real impact on the pace of development.

Despite the continuing efforts of the Department of Environment to submit recommendations to planning that should be considered with equal weight as economic and social considerations, very little appears to have changed when it comes to Central Planning Authority decisions.

The five-year anniversary comes as the environment is facing increasing threats. But there is also an increasing awareness among local people about the need to protect Cayman’s precious natural resources, illustrated by the increasing activism in the community against projects that would destroy important habitats, such as the cruise berthing facility proposal and more recently the application by a local bar owner to remove some 180,000 sq.ft of sea grass in Barkers.

Despite the multiple challenges, the DoE continues to press ahead with conservation wherever it can. As the department marked the anniversary today, it reminded the community how to nominate land for protected status under the National Conservation Law.

Anyone can nominate specific areas of land with natural interest, and submissions can be made between 15 June and 15 September each year in the form of a letter to the National Conservation Council (conservationcouncil@gov.ky). It must contain a description of the area in sufficient detail to plot its boundaries, the reasons why the area should be selected, a description of protected species or species of special concern in the area and any conservation problems associated with it.

For more information on conservation and environmental issues contact Doe@gov.ky or call 949-8469.

For the 4th consecutive year, the Department of Environment’s nesting beach monitoring programme has recorded more than 400 turtle nests.

The DOE has been keeping a close eye on turtle nesting for more than 20 years. Since the inception of its monitoring programme back in 1998, the DOE has documented a ten-fold increase in turtle nest numbers.

This year’s total of 406 nests across all three islands represents the 4th consecutive year of 400-plus nests, and the continuation of the long-term upward trend.

But the 2018 total fell shy of last year’s record-setting tally of more than 680 nests.

“Each turtle doesn’t nest every year, so when you have a low year it is often followed by increase in numbers the following year,” said DOE Research Officer Janice Blumenthal.

She told Cayman 27 while this year’s turtle nesting numbers failed to surpass a record-setting 2017, the long-term increase in nesting since 1998 is remarkable.

“When the DOE started our nesting beach monitoring, the nesting populations were thought to be extinct or nearly extinct. We started the monitoring in the sister islands because that is where we felt the population had the best chance of persisting, we only found 15 nests in Little Cayman in the first year of monitoring, and one nest in Cayman Brac,” said Ms. Blumenthal.

In 1999 the DOE began monitoring turtle nesting in Grand Cayman and recorded just 23 nests. Read the whole story here.

Taking Nassau grouper from local waters will be illegal until the season reopens on April 30. During the closed season, anyone who takes, purchases, receives, offers for sale, exchanges or donates Nassau grouper is violating the National Conservation Law. It is also illegal for anyone to possess, or permit another person to take, Nassau grouper from Cayman waters.

"The Nassau grouper is a protected species under the NCL, so we shouldn’t see any fresh grouper being sold in restaurants or markets during the closed season,” Department of Environment research officer Bradley Johnson said in a statement. “If members of the public do see it for sale, please don’t purchase it." Read the whole story here.

A controversial coastal works application that calls for construction of a 300′ dock and the removal of more than four acres of seagrass will be reviewed by the Department of Environment, under delegated authority from the national Conservation Council, before it goes to cabinet.

The DOE told Cayman 27 in theory, the National Conservation Council has the ability to require an environmental impact assessment to inform its advice, however it says no decision has been made on this application as of yet.

Out of more than 600 consultations in the 18-month period ending at the end of 2017, less than one percent were deemed to require an EIA.

A grassroots movement to Save Barker’s Beach is gathering steam, in reaction to a coastal works application bound for cabinet. The group’s online petition has garnered more than 1,600 signatures in just three days.

The applicant seeks to remove an area of seagrass roughly three times the size of a football pitch to create a swim area, and install a 300 foot dock.

Riders on horseback take in the scenery along one of Grand Cayman’s last great unspoilt coastlines, Barker’s beach.

“It’s quiet and serene, it’s a beautiful location, untouched as you said, and it should remain so,” said Laura Egglishaw of Save Barker’s Beach. “It was a great place for families to come and spend time together on the weekends, so it means a lot culturally as well as the environmental impacts that this area has.”

Ms. Egglishaw told Cayman 27 the reasons why she’s standing up to oppose a plan for the 21-acre parcel of land that includes a 300-foot dock and removal of approximately 180,000 square feet of seagrass from one of Cayman’s largest replenishment zones.

In August the applicant, Calico Jack’s Hendell Whittaker, announced plans to relocate the business after the lease to its current site on Seven Mile Beach expires at the end of 2020. Read the whole story here.

The Water Authority has released a report addressing previously unanswered questions about the National Roads Authority dumping waste containing a carcinogen into Grand Cayman’s wetlands.

According to the report, the NRA has been dumping wastewater and sludge from roadside storm drains into the island’s wetlands since at least 2011. The NRA began doing this after the Water Authority and the Department of Environmental Health stopped accepting the waste at their facilities.

The report states that the NRA’s dumping was not “formally endorsed” by the Department of Environmental Health, the Department of Environment or the Water Authority, but the report does not mention why those departments allowed the practice to continue for years.

Along with detailing how long the NRA has been dumping waste in wetlands, the report also suggests that thousands of gallons of waste may have been dumped in the wetlands over the years.

According to the report, the NRA cleans out about 500 wells with two 4,000-gallon trucks, and “each truck is emptied 3 to 4 times per day.” Only one truck was in service as of September. The waste will now be deposited at the George Town landfill. Read the whole story here.

‘Tis the season for conch and whelk. Starting Thursday (1 November,) residents will be able to legally harvest these gastronomic gastropods as long as they stick to the Department of Environment’s strict catch limits.

November first marks open season on conch and whelk, and the DOE wants seafood lovers to harvest these marine mollusks responsibly.

“Please don’t go overboard, go out, have a nice weekend, get some conch, pick up some whelk if you want, but please remember these are recreational limits is what they’re designed for,” said DOE legislation implementation and coordination unit manager John Bothwell.

He told Cayman 27 strict limits are in place to ensure conch and whelk are here for Cayman’s future enjoyment.

“That means please don’t go to the restaurants and try to sell to them because they can’t take more than the limit anyway, if you are a restaurateur, and somebody comes to you with a big bag of conch, A) tell them no, B) please call the DOE or call 911 and say, hey I’ve got someone here trying to sell me some illegal stuff,” said Mr. Bothwell.

The DOE’s limits for conch are five per person or ten per boat per day, whichever is less. For whelk, the daily limits are two-and-a-half gallons in the shell (half of a five-gallon bucket) or two-and-a-half pounds cleaned.

Mr. Bothwell said those limits include possession and apply to individuals as well as restaurants.

“When people are looking for restaurants to sell a hundred conch to, that cannot be sustained in our country, unfortunately, and so we just cannot allow it,” said Mr. Bothwell.

He dispels the myth that the poaching of marine resources is a victimless crime. Read the whole story here.

Conservation officers on Grand Cayman came to the rescue of a juvenile hawksbill turtle at the weekend that was entangled in discarded fishing line. The Department of Environment officers were called to help on Saturday in the North Sound after a member of the public spotted the endangered sea turtle in difficulty but was not able to free it. The DoE officers disentangled the juvenile turtle before releasing it back into the sea in the Rum Point channel. While this case had a happy ending, the DoE officers said they are still seeing far too many sea creatures becoming entangled in bundles of discarded fishing line.

“The conservation officers who responded Saturday pulled in a lot of fishing line from the water,” said Mark Orr, DoE chief conservation officer. “This is another reminder to the public to please recycle fishing line, rather than just tossing it away.”

DoE Research Officer Janice Blumenthal said entanglement in discarded fishing line is one of the most serious threats to juvenile turtles in Cayman. “Fishing line is nearly invisible underwater and causes drowning and severe injuries, such as flipper amputations. Even if unwanted fishing line is sent to the landfill, it can continue to entangle birds and other animals. Fishing line takes more than 600 years to degrade.” Read the whole story here.

A second phase of the Environmental Impact Assessment on the cruise berthing project will likely be required before Cabinet can grant final approval for construction to begin on the project.

Both Department of Environment director Gina Ebanks-Petrie and project manager Peter Ranger said Friday that an updated environmental study on the new designs would be completed before approval is granted for work to begin.

Ms. Ebanks-Petrie said there was still significant work that needed to take place before the full environmental impacts could be quantified. That includes an examination of the rock on the seabed to determine what technologies would be used during dredging and construction. At this stage, she said, it was not possible to rule out that blasting may be required, something that would increase the extent of the environmental impacts.

Additional studies are also needed on the new design of the dock, she said. Read the whole story here.

Jean-Michel Cousteau (Photo credit: Carrie Vonderhaar of Ocean Futures Society)

World renowned ocean explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau, who founded the Ocean Futures Society, a marine conservation and education organisation, has written to Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell and Environment Minister Dwayne Seymour urging them to reconsider plans to develop the cruise berthing facility in George Town Harbour.

In the letter he points out that the project would destroy the George Town reefs, adding, ” I hope the decision makers will see that the value of keeping what draws tourists to their island, the ocean and its reefs, is far more valuable in the long run than more cruise ships and a congested George Town.”

Cousteau, who has been a dive ambassador for the Cayman Islands and worked with the Department of Tourism for many years, said, “I cannot passively let these coral reefs die without voicing my concern! I am speaking out on behalf of my marine conservation organization, Ocean Futures Society, and hope that the people of the Cayman Islands will also make their voices heard through the petition that is being circulated.” Read the whole story here.

Minister of Health, Environment, Culture and Housing, Dwayne Seymour, said that recycling alone will not solve Cayman’s waste problem.

The Minister made the comments as part of his message for World Habitat Day which the United Nations recognizes on the first Monday in October.

The purpose of World Habitat Day is to reflect on the state of cities and towns and the basic human right to adequate shelter.

The UN’s theme for this year, marking the 43rd annual World Habitat Day, is Municipal Solid Waste Management – an issue which the Minister noted was, “very topical for our islands at this time”.

While accepting that access to adequate shelter is a basic right that all human beings share, the Minister noted that enjoyment of this right is severely impacted by litter and waste management challenges.

“While we all have a right to decent housing, we all also share a responsibility to make our communities and homes cleaner and safer,” said Seymour.

“The Cayman Islands, like many island nations in the Caribbean Sea, is no stranger to such problems. However, both the government and our private citizens are acting on a daily basis to tackle this worldwide challenge head-on in our own backyard,” added Seymour.

Seymour acknowledged the commendable efforts made by groups in the community, notably Plastic Free Cayman, as well as, strides made by his own ministry as it relates to recycling but noted that it was simply not enough. Read the whole story here.

The Jamaican government announced a ban on plastic bags, plastic straws, and Styrofoam products.

Jamaica joins a growing list of countries in the region to take legislative steps to address single-use plastic pollution, and local plastic-free advocates applaud the move.

Jamaica, an island paradise not far from our own has become the latest Caribbean nation to take steps against single-use plastic.

Plastic bags, Styrofoam food and beverage containers, and plastic straws are banned effective January first of next year, according to Jamaican media reports.

“It is so wonderful to see positive changes from every level, from a business level to a personal level, and governments actually taking that really brave step and just saying nope, we have had enough,” said Plastic-Free Cayman’s Claire Hughes.

Last month, Grenada announced a ban on Styrofoam food and beverage containers. This, just weeks after Dominica announced a ban on plastic straws, plastic plates, plastic forks, plastic knives, and Styrofoam containers.

“There are so many local countries that are awakening and banning single use plastic items, and I feel we are really missing an opportunity here,” said Ms. Hughes.

To commemorate World Oceans Day 2018, Plastic-Free Cayman and schoolchildren from various Cayman schools met with Environment Minister Dwayne Seymour on the steps of the Government Admin Building, calling for a ban on single-use plastic.

“We proposed banning single-use plastic,” said Ms. Hughes. “We have not really heard anything from that, and it is very frustrating.”

Ms. Hughes applauded businesses who have proactively sought alternatives to single use plastics, such as paper straws, but she says government has its role to play as well.

“That is absolutely fantastic, but I think really, if you’re going to eliminate these single use items that we don’t really need, then it has to come from government, it really does,” said Ms. Hughes. Read the whole story here.

Actor Adrian Grenier, right, speaks with moderator Jerry Butler during the Caribbean Transitional Energy Conference at the Kimpton. Photo credit: Michael Klein

Next time you go diving or snorkeling, leave your underwater camera behind and take a mesh bag to collect bottles, fishing lines, bits of plastic and other trash that you find.

Hollywood actor Adrian Grenier, an avid diver, says he had “some of the most engaging and exciting moments under water” doing these ocean clean ups.

Speaking about his passion for the environment at the Caribbean Transitional Energy Conference at the Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa on Thursday, he suggested taking care of Cayman’s beaches and seas was not only something residents should do, but also an area that is ripe for opportunity in terms of ecotourism.

“Bring people here not to just sit and be lazy spectators with their cocktail,” he said. “Get them out there and provide opportunities for them to help clean up the environment. It’s not a chore.”

Best known for his starring role as Vincent Chase in the HBO hit series “Entourage,” Mr. Grenier is an ocean conservationist and co-founder of the Lonely Whale Foundation. Read the whole story here.

More than 65 sites were targeted in last month’s government-sponsored cleanup project.

The two-week National Community Enhancement Project, known as NiCE, finished on Friday, Aug. 31. The project in previous years has been run over the Christmas period, and this year was the first time a summer program was added.

In a press release, government stated the largest work assignments included Smith Barcadere, Colliers Beach Access, the Bo Miller Beach and several vacant lots in George Town and Prospect.

Selected workers were also assigned to work with the Department of Environmental Health’s garbage collection crews, “which made a significant impact in reducing the backlog of collections across Grand Cayman.”

Other work details included an extensive roadside cleanup and a general tidy up of the Windsor Park residential area.

Work teams, which were supervised by foremen from Public Works Department, Department of Environmental Health and the National Roads Authority, also cleared litter and other debris from cemeteries, such as Dixie Cemetery on West Bay Road, and from popular tourist sites like Lovers Wall in East End.

Minister of Commerce, Planning and Infrastructure Joseph Hew said he was encouraged by the amount of work achieved during the program, in which 467 people participated.

“The initiative continues to provide a necessary gateway to further employment for those registered on the Community Enhancement Project,” he said. Read the whole story here.

Department of Environment volunteers and staff were able to rescue four turtle nests on an empty Seven Mile Beach lot last week when they intervened to stop an excavator that was clearing vegetation in the area. The team arrived just in time to stop the heavy equipment from driving over one nest, but discovered that three other nests at the site had very narrowly missed being crushed by the bulldozer. It took the staff over two hours to locate all the nests and confirm that the eggs were not damaged, having just missed the excavator tracks.

Using heavy equipment on the beach can crush turtle eggs or compact the sand above them, depriving them of oxygen and preventing them from hatching.

The DoE urges landowners and developers to refraining from operating heavy equipment on the beach during turtle nesting season. Other protective measures include not raking over turtle tracks on the beach, consulting with DoE before clearing Sargassum, and obtaining a permit for beach bonfires from the Department of Environmental Health.

It is not clear why the landowners in this case were clearing the beach. CNS understands that although planning permission had been granted, directions had been given that the work could not start until after the nesting season.

The Department of Environment is no longer represented on the steering committee overseeing the cruise berthing project.

Gina Ebanks-Petrie, the director of the DoE, confirmed Friday that she was no longer part of the committee, which is made up of a variety of representatives from relevant government agencies and is tasked with overseeing progress on the project.

An environmental impact assessment, completed in 2015, highlighted multiple environmental implications stemming from the project, the most serious being the impact on coral reefs in George Town harbor.

The Ministry of Tourism had not responded by press time Monday to questions from the Compass about the new makeup of the board.

The development comes amid increasingly vocal opposition to the cruise berthing project. Supporters of plans for a referendum on the cruise project collected around 800 signatures from registered voters Saturday – more than 15 percent of the 5,288 required to trigger a mandatory poll.

Cayman’s constitution allows for a “people initiated referendum” on any topic of national importance if a petition signed by 25 percent of the electorate is presented to Cabinet. The result of that referendum would be binding on government.

Deputy Governor Franz Manderson confirmed Monday that many civil servants will be allowed to sign the petition, as per the terms of a 2012 policy on signing of petitions by public servants.

The policy document indicates that civil servants can sign petitions calling for a people’s referendum. There are exceptions, however, for senior civil servants that are directly involved with policymaking and public servants directly involved with work related to the cruise berthing facility.

Anyone in a key position, which includes chief and deputy chief officers and policy advisers, is required to notify the public official whom his position supports, before signing.

A spokesperson for Cruise Port Referendum Cayman said, “The organizers are grateful to the Deputy Governor for his clarification on the matter and encourage public servants interested in signing the petition to review the policy to ensure compliance.”

The petition is currently available at Esso “Bar Cam” in Prospect, Four Winds Esso in West Bay, and Pure Art and Cathy Church Photo Centre in George Town.

NASA will be presenting its ‘Science On a Sphere’ educational programme to Cayman for the first time during the Caribbean Transitional Energy Conference (CTEC) 2018 from 13-14 September. The exhibition will be open to conference participants throughout the event, with local schools also being invited to attend.

The exhibition consists of a giant suspended sphere that uses four high definition projectors and computer technology to display planetary data onto the 3D animated globe, stated a CTEC press release. The displays include complex environmental processes, such as atmospheric storms, climate change and ocean temperatures to help educate and increase public understanding of the environment.

Science On a Sphere, which was developed by researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and BWC Visual Technology, who work alongside NASA to create thousands of datasets, represents real-life environmental scenarios of the atmosphere, oceans and land of a planet, the release said. Read the whole story here.

Central Caribbean Marine Institute Site on Little Cayman - Photo Credit Cayman Airways Skies)

Six community heroes who have worked to protect and preserve the marine environment have been nominated for the Central Caribbean Marine Institute’s People’s Choice Award.

The nominees include Captain Charles Ebanks, a fisherman who removed a “ghost net” that was ensnaring sharks and other marine life from Cayman’s waters; Douglas Cameron Jr. who started on-island plastic recycling through Precious Plastic Cayman; and Lucy Collyer, for her leadership in the sea turtle nest monitoring program.

Also nominated are Claire Hughes, who started the education and action group Plastic Free Cayman; Aaron Hunt, for his work on coral nurseries in Grand Cayman; and Derek Haines, for raising money to fund CCMI’s Reefs Go Live education program. CCMI is asking members of the public to help decide who will receive the award at the annual Festival of Seas Awards and Gala in November.

The award aims to recognize an individual or group who has a made significant positive impact on the marine environment. Read the whole story here.

Opposition Leader Ezzard Miller has filed a private member’s motion calling on government to put the question of whether or not it should go ahead with the cruise berthing project to the people. Calls for a referendum on the issue have been mounting as public support for the increasingly controversial proposal appears to have dwindled and the justification from government is losing traction. Now the opposition is challenging government to let the public decide with a vote. Speaking on behalf of the official opposition at a press conference on Thursday, Miller said he doesn’t believe there is enough support or justification and the project will not benefit most Caymanians.

Miller said the government was pursuing the costly development on the “false notion of wide-scale public support”, but he said there is “considerable evidence of a lack of public support” for this “ill-advised course of action.

He pointed to the absence of support from major stakeholders, such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Watersports Association and even the Cayman Islands Tourism Association, along with the demonstration of opposition from the people in 2015 with the sizable demonstration, and the public consultation results in the environmental impact study, where 73% said they opposed the project. Read the whole story here.

By 2025, it is estimated there will be one ton of plastic in the ocean for every three tons of fish.

One young Caymanian has joined the ranks of those striving to make Cayman plastic-free.

Twenty-year-old Estefania McDermot from George Town was inspired to target this form of pollution in the Cayman Islands after attending New Orleans’s annual Ocean Heroes Bootcamp in June.

Created by environmental organizations such as Lonely Whale and Captain Planet Foundation, the boot camp is designed to equip young people with the tools and knowledge to take action against single-use plastics.

The Weekender spoke to Estefania about her newfound passion. Read the whole story here.

A new, state of the art oceanographic monitoring station is now in place along Little Cayman’s north coast.

Central Caribbean Marine Institute’s next-generation ‘Coral Reef Early Warning System’ buoy tracks vital information that may further scientific understanding of factors impacting our coral reefs.

“Consider it as a fine-tuned canary in the coal mine,” said CCMI Director of Operations John Clamp.

He told Cayman 27 CCMI’s newest CREWS buoy is collecting information vital to the health of coral reefs.

“It’s going to give us information with respect to the health of the reefs, water quality issues, temperature, ocean acidification, and it also has an atmospheric package so we are looking at the atmospheric conditions as well,” explained Mr. Clamp. Read the whole stoy here.

McFarlane Conolly, the representative for East End on the National Conservation Council, has been appointed as the NCC chairman, stepping into the role vacated by Christine Rose-Smyth, who resigned in January. Three new members have also been appointed to the council created under the National Conservation Law, which remains a target of political criticism as it tries to balance rampant development with the desperate need to conserve the country’s dwindling natural resources.

According to the Government Gazette published at the end of last month, Conolly, who has been on the board since its inception, has been appointed chairman only until the end of September and it is not clear if he will be re-appointed.

Meanwhile, Cabinet has appointed three new voting members to serve on the board until June 2020: Edward Chisholm to represent North Side, Dominic Oliver Williams for Bodden Town and Franklin Thompson for West Bay. Nadie Hardie is the new NCC member representing the National Trust.

The council was created under the National Conservation Law, which was steered through the Legislative Assembly in a historical vote by the former environment minister, Wayne Panton, in 2013. Despite receiving unanimous support from both sides of the LA at the time, following after a number of compromise amendments made to accommodate concerns of all MLAs, the legislation has come under increasing criticisms. Politicians continue to bow to a vocal minority which sees the legislation as an impediment to development. Read the whole story here.

Save Cayman, a local non-profit conservation group that raises awareness about the need for greater protection for the country’s fragile environment, is once again calling on government to stop the costly cruise berthing project. Government’s plans to construct two piers and expand the existing cargo port in the George Town Harbour under some form of private-public partnership, posing a massive threat to the marine environment, has also caused concern over costs and who will ultimately pick up the tab.

“It has been our position that the environmental and economic costs of this project outweigh the benefits and there exists little evidence to suggest otherwise,” Save Cayman said in the wake of news that the project could be starting in a matter of weeks after tenants at the Royal Watler were told leases expire this month. Read the whole story here.

Young Caymanian hopes to engage peers in campaign to rid Cayman of polystyrene

Fresh off a trip the 2018 Ocean Heroes boot camp in New Orleans, one young Caymanian is energised and ready to inspire others to join her in protecting Cayman’s natural environment.

She’s starting a new conservation organisation that’s for Caymanians, by Caymanians.

17-year old Steff McDermott is passionate about the oceans that surround our islands.

“I just love the ocean so much, it’s on my island, and I think it is so important that more Caymanians are involved about that, and if I stand up and set a good example, hopefully my peers will stand up with me, and together we can get change on the island,” said Ms. McDermott.

She’s told Cayman 27 she’s hoping to make her passion for conservation contagious, especially to young Caymanians.

This month, Ms. McDermott traveled to New Orleans for the Ocean Heroes boot camp, where she and other environmentally minded youths came away with the tools to start their own campaigns.

“My campaign, the one that I want to have together with young Caymanians to work on is to ban polystyrene products, and to establish an education programme that is taught by Caymanians to Caymanians,” said Ms. McDermott. Read the whole story here.

Scientists are attempting to save a rare species of “pillar coral” blighted by disease.

Department of Environment staff and visiting experts began amputating healthy tissue from the affected corals on Monday. They plan to regrow it in coral nurseries and re-attach it to reefs using concrete epoxy.

Tim Austin, deputy director of the Department of Environment, said the black band disease had affected multiple colonies of pillar coral – towering structures that rise like skyscrapers from the reef.

He said the corals were rare in Cayman and the department had decided to act swiftly in an effort to save them.

The outbreak, at a dive site known as “killer pillar,” was spotted by staff from EcoDivers who noticed black bands forming on the seven-foot tall structures.

Mr. Austin said everything above the distinctive bands was still healthy and could be salvaged.

A crew from the Department of Environment investigated the site last week and were returning Monday to attempt to cut away healthy tissue from the affected corals.

Tammi Warrender, a visiting scientist working with the department, said, “The disease spreads from the bottom up, so we can take the healthy part and replant it far enough away for it to regrow.”

She said the department had consulted with experts in Florida where coral disease has impacted large swathes of reef.

“We think this is the best plan. We came to the conclusion it is better to try to do something. This is one of the rarest corals on the reef,” she said.

The DoE is also reaching out to dive centers around the island asking them to keep eyes open for other impacted coral colonies.

Ms. Warrender said the broader concern was that rising water temperatures had caused coral bleaching in recent years in Cayman. She said the corals did recover from bleaching, but the stress left them more susceptible to disease. Read the whole story here.

More than 30 volunteers took part in a cleanup at Jackson Point Beach on Little Cayman Monday.

Little Cayman District for the National Trust and local businesses teamed up to support the volunteers, who collected more than 20 bags of beach trash in just one hour.

Organizer Joe Ploplys said he hoped the exercise, dubbed the “Full Moon Beach Cleanup,” would become a monthly event.

Among the volunteers were island guests, residents, resort employees, retired people and children. Read the whole story here.

Well aware of the devastating impact invasive species can have on indigenous flora and fauna, the Department of Environment will be hosting a workshop next week on how to prevent potential future invasions that may be on the horizon. Conservationists from other British Overseas Territories will join staff from the Cayman Islands DoE to listen to advice from other professionals from the UK and Europe on the work being done around the world in an effort to protect unique habitat from invasive threats.

Cayman knows only too well the massive problems presented by the unwelcome arrival of non-native species, from the threats to our marine environment posed by the pernicious lionfish to the prolific green iguana on land. While those two species are the most talked about here, the Cayman Islands, like other islands, are faced with many other threats from invasive plant species and pests that are attacking the local flora.

Fred Burton, head of the DoE Terrestrial Unit, told CNS that the “Horizon workshop” was about looking ahead at what other dangers are out there that we should know about and try to protect the Cayman Islands from and how best to combat potential future invasions. Read the whole story here.

Cayman’s primary school children are literally singing the praises of recycling and waste reduction, with four schools submitting “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” jingles for an Earth Month competition hosted by the Department of Environmental Health.

In line with the Earth Month celebrations in April, the Department of Environmental Health encouraged all primary schools across the Cayman Islands to create and submit catchy jingles with the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” theme.

This competition was aimed at increasing awareness and education about waste reduction through reusing and recycling, in order to promote a more sustainable environment and to cut back on the amount of disposable single-use items that are consumed. Cayman Prep, St. Ignatius, Edna M. Moyle and Truth For Youth primary schools all took part in the event, submitting a total of eight jingles. Cayman Prep submitted five jingles total, and all of the other schools submitted one each.

The teams from Cayman Prep, St. Ignatius and Edna M. Moyle, who were judged by an internal body at the DEH as the top three competing schools, were invited to the Government Administration Building in George Town on Monday afternoon, where they found out where they had placed in the competition.

The St. Ignatius team came in first place with their rap song “Trash Talk,” winning $500 in gift certificates from A. L. Thompson’s, the Music Box in Camana Bay, Subway and the Book Nook. Dylan Scott, Janae Thompson, Jude Solomon, Kyan Okoli, Felix Muhlanga and Andre Massias created the jingle with their teachers Guy Rogers and Vito Biliti. Read the whole story here.

The National Gallery’s newest exhibit features works from 30 local and international underwater photographers.

It’s called Coral Encounters, and it’s part of the 2018 International Year of the Reef initiative.

The collection of images captures the colours of the reef and the diversity of its inhabitants, and aims to raise awareness of the threats these vital environments face.

“The exhibition is really a bridge between art and science,” said National Gallery Director Natalie Urquhart. “The exhibition attempts to show through these amazing photographer’s works the symmetry, the geometry, and the colours as well, and all of this of course is just a few feet from us at any one time in the Cayman Islands.”

The Department of Environment is reminding the public that the season for taking conch, whelk, lobster or game birds is now closed.

“After May 1, everyone should remember that they cannot take conch, or whelk, or lobsters, or either of our two game birds, until those seasons reopen,” said John Bothwell, manager of the Department of Environment’s Legislation Implementation and Coordination Unit.

“Our goal is to promote a sustainable recreational fishery that will serve the public for years into the future,” he said. “Not taking marine life when they are spawning is a major component of a sustainable fishery and one of the reasons why the Cayman Islands and other fisheries jurisdictions around the world have closed and open seasons, along with bag and size limits, for marine life that is at risk of being overfished.”

The DoE also reminded people that chitons, periwinkles, bleeding teeth and echinoderms, including starfish, sea eggs/urchins, sea cucumbers and sand dollars, may not be taken at any time. Read whole story here.

Material from a deadly ghost net removed from Cayman’s waters last week is being shipped to the U.S. and may be used in the manufacture of Adidas sports shoes.

Environmental organization Parley for the Oceans has arranged to take the netting. The group turns ocean plastic waste into thread that is woven into running shoes.

In partnership with sportswear giant Adidas, they produced a limited edition running shoe, the Adidas Parley, made from fishing line and other recycled materials.

Tim Austin, deputy director of the Department of Environment, said staff and volunteers from Plastic Free Cayman spent Sunday processing the net for shipping. Read the whole story here.

After a long and protracted battle to secure funding for a legal challenge against government over its failure to register and protect beach access rights for the public, activists have been granted legal aid to press their case. In his ruling, Acting Justice Alastair Malcolm said the applicants’ case had a fair chance of succeeding, bringing a welcome boost to the long campaign. The issue of beach access has recently become a major cause for public concern, with stories mounting about the difficulties local people are experiencing as they try to get to the beach. Read the whole story here.

Divers observe a reef shark on Grand Cayman's East End (Photo Credit: Steve Broadbelt, Ocean Frontiers)

Affectionate nicknames like Smudge, Scarlet and Big Bertha are not the first thing most people think of when they see a seven-foot shark cruise by.

But resident predators have become such familiar fixtures on Cayman Islands’ reefs, divers have begun to give them pet names.

“Burt and Ernie are usually found at one particular dive site. Smudge, Scarlet and Big Bertha at another area,” said John Buckley, a frequent diver at East End. “The sharks are inquisitive and will literally swim right up to you, swim amongst groups of divers, through tunnels, canyons, and come back around for more.”

Divers across the Cayman Islands are helping keep tabs on the islands’ shark population by logging sightings like these with the Department of Environment.

Since 2008, the department has partnered with Marine Conservation International to study Cayman’s sharks, and the data from divers is a useful tool for researchers. Read the whole story here.

The Stingray Swim Club filled more than 50 bags with trash from the Windsor Park neighbourhood during the Earth Day Clean Up.

Forty-five Stingray Swim Club members, friends and family rolled out of bed early Saturday, not for morning training, but for this year’s Earth Day cleanup.

For the second consecutive year, Stingray participated in the Chamber of Commerce event. Members of all ages, and from every group within the club, took part – with a resounding desire shared by all to make this part of the club’s annual calendar of events.

The club agreed that it would be good to do their cleanup work in an area where they live, play and interact every day, so with this in mind, they chose to focus efforts in the Windsor Park neighborhood. Read whole story here.

Sargassum seaweed lines the beach by the Red Bay dock in South Sound Sunday. – Photo Credit: Taneos Ramsay

Beachgoers reported an influx of sargassum seaweed this weekend at a number of beaches and coastal areas on the south side of Grand Cayman and in parts of West Bay.

Identifiable by its distinctive smell and berrylike, gas-filled bladders, sargassum weed has caused problems for beachfront residents and businesses in previous years. Last year, around June, Seven Mile Beach was lined with the seaweed.

Passengers flying into and out of Cayman this weekend reported seeing “blankets” of the seaweed floating out at sea.

While not an unusual event, the sighting and reporting of the seaweed has increased substantially in recent years. Due to warming ocean temperatures in the Atlantic, there has been a significant increase in the amount of sargassum seaweed floating across the ocean. Strong currents and high winds push the sargassum across the Caribbean and onto beaches in the region.

Sargassum is an algae that floats in the ocean, typically after becoming dislodged from seabeds or coral. The Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic Ocean gets its name from the sargassum that grows there in abundance. Read the whole story here.

Governor Anwar Choudhury is met at the Owen Roberts Airport by dignitaries and a police contingent

The new Cayman Islands governor, Anwar Choudhury, has said that his first duty on taking up office is security. But the new UK representative also pointed to human rights and the environment as other key issues he will be turning his attention to, as well as helping to protect Cayman’s financial services sector. Choudhury arrived in Cayman today, carrying his three-month-old daughter, Emilia, in his arms, as he was greeted by government officials and dignitaries. Read the whole story here.

Luke and Jade Barnard pose next to the recyclable garbage collected from Highlands in West Bay.

Two teenagers, Jade and Luke Barnard, have begun a small-scale recycling business in West Bay at the Shores and at Highlands to encourage people to recycle their trash.

In April last year, Luke Barnard, 15, came up with the idea with his sister, Jade, 13, to earn a little pocket money while doing something to help the environment and his neighborhood.

Together, Jade and Luke decided that they would put aside a couple of hours every Sunday morning to collect the recycling that their neighbors put out on the curb and take it to the recycling point at the Foster’s Food Fair in West Bay, charging a small fee of either $5 or $3, respective to whether the recyclables came sorted or unsorted, into glass and plastic and cardboard.

“People want to recycle but they don’t always have the time or know-how to do so,” Jade said. “We want to expand this project to other neighborhoods and make it an official business soon.” Read the whole story here.

A photograph taken last month of three young children staring out to sea from a North Side beach strewn with plastic debris and other garbage brought home to many in Cayman the prevalence of the islands’ plastic pollution problem.

The image, which appeared on the front page of the Cayman Compass and across social media on island, was taken during a beach cleanup – one of many that local residents and grassroots groups have carried out in an effort to combat the growing piles of plastic that have washed up on the once-pristine beaches of the Cayman Islands.

Founder of the Plastic Free Cayman advocacy group, Claire Hughes, says people are “well and truly addicted” to plastic, so the problem is unlikely to go away without significant changes to people’s habits and usage of plastic.

“It isn’t necessarily our fault; it’s convenient, it’s easy and it’s woven into the very fabric of our society,” she said.

At an Ocean Conservancy-led International Coastal Cleanup last year, in which 87 people participated, 1,362 pounds of trash was collected from a 0.9-mile stretch of beach. Of the 6,455 items collected, 3,313 were pieces of plastic waste, with the most common items being plastic straws, bottles and bags.

The Central Caribbean Marine Institute has partnered with the Cayman Islands Brewery to promote a “Zero Impact” on local coral reefs initiative.

For every case of Cayman Islands Brewery bottles returned to the brewery in January, the brewery will donate $2 to CCMI to support coral reef conservation.

James Mansfield, commercial manager of the Cayman Islands Brewery, said the brewery is eager to work with CCMI in the “International Year of the Reef.”

“We are seeing lowered rates of bottle returns now that recycling bins have popped up around the island,” said Mr. Mansfield in a press release.

“Customers think the bottles are coming back to us, when in fact they are not. They end up in the landfill or crushed. We want to drive our current 40 percent return rate up to 60 percent and higher with this initiative, moving toward the idea that our bottles have zero impact on coral reefs and [the] environment in general.” Read the whole story here.

The National Trust is ramping up its campaign to raise funds to buy and safeguard environmentally important land from development, following a government decision to drop its funding to the National Conservation Council to buy land for protected areas.

The Trust’s Land Reserve Fund is embarking on an education and fundraising campaign.

“The Trust has some challenging goals to meet in order to continue preserving native habitats in the Cayman Islands where so many indigenous but endangered species of trees, plants, birds and animals live,” the organization stated in a press release.

“While development is inevitable, more and more wild areas which make up the habitats of our native plants and animals are being cleared and developed. Unless we work quickly to set aside land for preservation, our indigenous species will be lost forever.” Read the whole story here.

With just a few days to go before the legal lobster season opens in the Cayman Islands, the Department of Environment (DoE) is reminding lobster lovers planning to go out on the water this weekend not to poach and to ensure they know, and stay within, the legal limits in order to protect them for future generations. Lobsters remain at risk and people should only take a limited amount during the three-month open season, which begins on Friday.

“The open season for lobster is designed to give people a chance to recreationally harvest these delicious marine crustaceans in a sustainable way,” said DoE Senior Research Officer John Bothwell. “Our goal is a sustainable recreational fishery for lobsters not just this season, but for many seasons in the future as well.”

During the open season, which lasts until 28 February, it is legal to take lobster from Cayman Islands waters, but the bag limit is three per person per day or six per boat per day, whichever is less. Only lobsters with a minimum 6-inch tail length are allowed and no one can take any from Marine Protected Areas such as the Marine Parks, and the replenishment and environmental zones. Read the whole story here.

Anyone who sees or suspects poaching of conch, whelk or lobster is occurring can call 911 for immediate response, or DoE enforcement officers directly, Grand Cayman: 916-4271, Cayman Brac: 926-0136, Little Cayman: 925-0185.

For more information on all of the local closed seasons and other conservation rules, call the DoE on 949-8649, email DoE@gov.ky or visit the DoE website.

Starfish Point is a tourist favorite, one of the most common stops for tour operators. But one water sports business owner says visitors are not taking care of the very creatures that make the area so popular. Cayman 27’s Philipp Richter reports.

Starfish Point is one of Cayman’s most recognized attractions, but one tour operator says that some tourists are doing more harm than good.

“You can touch them, you can take a photo as long as you make sure you keep them under the surface, that will always keep them safe,” said Gefferson Tatum, tour operator for The Sweet Spot.

The tour operator said the Starfish population was much higher four years ago. But he’s seen a decline in numbers and he’s blaming visitors who take the animal out of the water. Read the whole story here.

Conch and whelk season opens tomorrow, 1 November, when shellfish-lovers can help themselves to five queen conchs per person per day or ten per boat, and 2½ gallons of whelks in the shell, or 2½ pounds of processed whelks. But the Department of Environment is urging people not to be tempted to poach during the open season, which lasts until 30 April, to know the legal limits, locations and types of seafood they can take.

“The open season for conch and whelk is designed to give people a chance to recreationally harvest these marine gastropods in a sustainable way,” said DoE Senior Research Officer John Bothwell. “Our goal is a sustainable recreational fishery for both of these species, not just this November, but for many years in the future as well.”

The DoE also reminded people who plan going out on the water this weekend that the lobster season is not open yet. Read the whole story here.

A consortium of companies led by Dart Enterprises is in line to take over responsibility for waste management in the Cayman Islands in a 25-year deal that will involve the closure and capping of the existing George Town landfill.

The new system will involve construction of a waste-to-energy plant, recycling and composting centers, and a much smaller lined landfill site.

The current site – dubbed “Mount Trashmore” because of its unsightly presence towering over George Town and its visibility to arriving aircraft and cruise ships – will be capped and covered with grass.

Landfill sites in Cayman Brac and Little Cayman will also be closed, with waste from the Sister Islands shipped to Grand Cayman.

The new suite of facilities is expected to reduce the 100,000 tons of waste currently going into landfill every year by as much as 95 percent. Instead, much of the trash will be fed into a 7 megawatt waste-to-energy plant and sold as electricity to the Caribbean Utilities Company. The facility will be built on Dart lands close to the Waste Water Treatment plant. Read the whole story here.

When Queen Elizabeth II opened Grand Cayman’s Botanic Park in 1994, only the Woodland Trail was complete, but new gardens and areas have been opening up ever since.

This week saw the park break ground on a new Children’s Garden. “The garden is a place for children to play and learn,” said John Lawrus, the park’s general manager.

The Children’s Garden will feature an education area, open play area with a tree house and a grow zone. A environmental zone with mini ecosystems will also be a part of the garden.

“The Children’s Garden will be a magical place … making a science book come to life – climb, listen, touch, build … and will inspire the minds of children of all ages,” said architect John Doak.

Some features of the park will include an open grass lawn area, raised planting beds and boxes for demonstrations where children can get their hands dirty, mini ecosystems, water features, misting areas, water pumps, solar and windmill energy generation, desalination, a maze, amphitheater, a rope bridge, and wattle fences. Read more here.

While Cayman’s natural barriers may inhibit its agricultural potential, a Canadian farming operation is betting on transforming the islands into a potential aquaponics site.

Alberta-based NutraPonics is evaluating plans to set up a 6,000-square-meter (64,580-square-foot) growing bed in Grand Cayman that director Tim Goltz anticipates will satisfy 80 percent of the local leafy greens market.

“We can blow the top off it and really surprise people. We can make Cayman a global leader,” Mr. Goltz said.

“Indoor vertical farming in and of itself is probably one of the hottest investment spaces in the world right now,” Mr. Goltz said. Read the whole story here.

Royal Palms is cracking down on plastics to save the planet, and it’s starting by ditching plastic beverage straws.

Royal Palms Operations Manager Emily Shaw told Cayman 27, plastic straws will be phased out starting 1 July and replaced with biodegradable paper straws.

From there, the restaurant plans to increase its recycling efforts, and phase out all plastic cutlery.

“I think we just have to do the environmentally responsible thing at this point,” said Ms. Shaw, who cited the documentary ‘A Plastic Ocean’ as an influence in the decision to make changes. “Generally, we just felt a moral obligation.”

Ms. Shaw told Cayman 27 Royal Palms’ decision to ditch plastics has been well received, and generated a lot of attention.

A promotional video from local producers Vagabond Media Group, titled ‘Don’t suck,’ features plastic users being ‘fish slapped’ by a mermaid’s tail. So far, the video has racked up almost 60-thousand views. View the video here. See the rest of the story here.

The Cayman Reporter shares tips and ideas to help you save the planet with suggestions on how you can go greener every day. Growing your own produce, no matter how small your backyard or garden, can be a really rewarding way to become a little more self-sustaining and thereby put less pressure on the environment by cutting down on the huge amount of food the Cayman Islands imports. Read the whole story here.

Renee Ebanks signs the Chamber’s environmental pledge as Chamber CEO Wil Pineau looks on.

So many people committed to the Chamber of Commerce’s environmental pledge to reduce waste, recycle, and live greener lives at an energy forum over the weekend that the organizers ran out of pledge forms, according to Chamber CEO Wil Pineau.

The Chamber of Commerce presented its updated environmental pledge at the Caribbean Utility Company’s “Energy Efficiency Forum and Fair” on June 3.

First introduced in 2007, the pledge encourages businesses, schools and community members to preserve and protect the environment, and commit to reducing waste, conserving energy, recycling, and implementing greener ways of living, the Chamber stated in a press release. Read the whole story here.

Note: Mr. Pineau said the updated pledge would soon be available online at www.caymanchamber.ky.

The CDP member on the government back-benches, Capt Eugene Ebanks, the member for West Bay Central, will be working alongside Cabinet minister and independent member for Bodden Town East, Dwayne Seymour, as the councillor with responsibility for housing and the environment. Ebanks has served in the LA since 2000 but he has not played a significant part in political debate in the 17 years he has been a representative for West Bay. But on the occasions he has spoken out, it was to defend the rights of fishermen over environmental restrictions. He has also publicly opposed the expansion of the marine parks. Read the whole story here.

The Cayman Islands Department of Environment is inviting residents to join a competition called Take5Cayman, which aims to help clean up the area’s precious natural resources.

The contest, along with World Environment Day on June 5 and World Oceans Day on June 8, encourages people to take a few moments to clean up the islands’ beaches, reefs and public spaces. Toward that end, five contestants will win a “Discover Scuba” package.

To have a chance to win, participants clean up an area and call attention to it by taking a picture or a video of the cleanup efforts, using the hashtag #Take5Cayman and tagging the DOE on Facebook or Instagram. Once the DOE “likes” the photo or video, the person is entered into a random draw.

Four participants will be selected randomly for a one-person “Discover Scuba” dive package offered by local dive operators. A prize of a two-person dive package will also be given for the most creative photo or video. Read the whole story here.

Turtles have started to come home to Cayman for nesting season. Volunteers and officials with the Department of Environment have counted 53 nests so far this year across the islands.

The DOE’s Janice Blumenthal said: “Turtle nesting season 2017 is off to a great start with volunteers patrolling beaches around the three islands searching for turtle nests.”

They have found and marked 36 nests on Grand Cayman, nine on the Brac and eight on Little Cayman. Last year set a recent record for turtle nests with more than 430 nests across the islands, according to the DOE.

Plans to turn part of the Barkers peninsula into a national park, protected from development, have taken a step closer after the approval of 11 pieces of land on Grand Cayman and Little Cayman as the islands’ first protected areas.

The National Conservation Council agreed Wednesday to formally recommend that Cabinet designate the chosen areas, including the publicly owned parts of Barkers, to be protected under the National Conservation Law. The recommendations follow three months of public consultation, which indicated overwhelming approval for the plans.

After the vote, Wednesday, Council Chair Christine Rose-Smyth said, “This is a historic step forward in our mission of putting the National Conservation Law into place.”

The prospect of a genuine National Park on the Barkers peninsula has been discussed for decades but never legally enacted, in part because government does not own all of the land.The council now plans to negotiate with Dart Real Estate, the major private land owner in the peninsula, over broader plans to create a park, combining low impact leisure use with its conservation goals. Read the whole story here.

The Cayman Islands are known for their exquisite white sand beaches, crystal clear water, vibrant coral reefs teeming with fish and safe, clean neighborhoods. Keeping the Islands this way is no easy task and the Chamber’s annual Earth Day Clean Up helps keep us clean and green!
Held in conjunction with Earth Week and aided by The Department of Environmental Health, this event is the largest volunteer-driven occurrence in the Country.

Chamber Members are encouraged to round up more volunteers than the year before and are set loose to clean trash off the beaches and streets while our Diving and Watersports Operators hold undersea reef cleanups.

Hot and tired at the end of the day, all volunteers are invited to a delicious brunch at one of our beach-side restaurants.

While relaxing, sipping a cold drink and enjoying the view, members and volunteers are invited to sign the Chamber’s Environmental Pledge , promising to protect the environment, conserve energy and recycle.

We work hard to keep Cayman beautiful for our visitors as well as for our future generations!

Branson in Little Cayman to see groupers

Cayman Reporter
March 17, 2017

Sir Richard Branson was in Little Cayman and witnessed a massive spawning aggregation of Nassau groupers and was impressed.

Branson made the dive off the coast of Little Cayman with Dr. Guy Harvey, the Cayman Islands Department of Environment and Reef Environmental Education Foundation to help spread the word about protecting this critically endangered iconic fish.

Each year after the February full moon, thousands of Nassau groupers gather off the west end of Little Cayman to spawn. This concentration of fish in one area makes them an easy target for fishermen and consequently, populations of Nassau grouper have become overfished and devastated throughout the Caribbean.

REEF and the DoE have worked for 15 years to monitor and protect this species and aggregation site. Because of the ongoing research programme, education, and implemented legislation including a five-month closed season and catch limits, scientists consider there is a positive trend in the recovery of the species.

Branson, who described the experience in a blog, visited Little Cayman to see if the scientific work and conservation effort could be exported to other islands.

DoE app to help with research and enforcement

The Department of Environment has launched a new ‘app’ that combines information from its marine enforcement officers with that from the public. SIREN Cayman enables both the public and officials to input information relating to sightings of important species and to report what may be infractions of the conservation law. The smart phone application was unveiled by DoE Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie at the opening of the 69th Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries conference, held Monday at the Westin Hotel.

SIREN Cayman is free and can be downloaded from your smart phone application store.

Agreement Reached on SMB Coral Damage Incident

The Cayman Islands Government; and TDE Maritime, the owner of the M/Y Tatoosh, have reached an agreement in relation to coral that was damaged in Cayman Islands waters – specifically, the Seven Mile Beach Park – between 12-14 January this year.

No admissions of fault were made, neither was there any disclosure on costs associated with restoration of the coral or associated fees for damages to the marine park.

“Losing any of our coral affects not only the stability of our environment, but also our economy”, said the Minister of Environment, Wayne Panton. “The agreement with TDE Maritime therefore reflects a value commensurate with the loss of our public resource and facilitates a permanent mooring solution in Seven Mile Beach Park, “he said.

The agreement was made without admissions from either party regarding the January incident. Speaking for TDE Maritime, Mr Paul G Allen noted, “We are committed to environmental stewardship, with a proven history of working to improve ocean health through research, innovation and policy change. Our experience around the world in ocean conservation has proven that real change requires dedicated, long-term investment to have a meaningful effect”, he said. Mr Allen further stated, “We share the Cayman Islands Government’s goal of responsible management of the natural environment; and this agreement will help preserve the reefs and ecosystem for future generations”. Minister Panton said the agreement settles the matter between the parties. “Our goal was to work with TDE Maritime in order to reach the best agreement for Cayman; and we achieved this goal because of our shared commitment to the environment,” he said.

Ten mile highway extension faces environmental roadblock

A 10-mile highway extension providing swift access from George Town to a planned golf resort in the eastern districts will require an environmental impact assessment before it gets the green light, the National Conservation Council ruled Wednesday.

Government and developer Ironwood are in the final stages of negotiations over a partnership to build the extension to the East-West Arterial Highway.

Ironwood believes the road is a key part of making the planned Arnold Palmer golf course and resort a success, while government has argued that the project will create jobs and open up new land for development.

The new National Conservation Law gives the council power to require an applicant, in this case the government and the National Roads Authority in partnership with Ironwood, to carry out an environmental impact assessment on major projects.

Gina Ebanks-Petrie, director of the Department of Environment, said the project is “probably the longest road ever constructed in the Cayman Islands.” The department recommended an EIA to determine the likely impacts along the corridor, particularly on the Central Mangrove Wetlands, which it describes as the “ecological heart of Grand Cayman.” Read the whole story here.

Less than 24 hours after announcing talks were underway to buy over the prized land at the centre of public petition, Premier Hon Alden McLaughlin says Government and developers Bronte have reached a deal in principle for the purchase.

Mr McLaughlin told Cayman 27 hammering out the deal was not something achieved overnight since Government was on the heels of Bronte before the three storey, 24 unit condo complex became public.

He told the LA on Friday (7 October) a price is still being ironed out, but Government agreed to meet the purchase cost, stamp duty and associated costs incurred by Bronte.

However he said it’s about getting the land in the hands of the people of Cayman as soon as possible.

“We have already got a draft of the contract available for us for consideration and I am hopeful within a week or two we will actually complete the purchase,” Mr McLaughlin said.

The purchase will be paid out of the $60 million Environment Protection Fund and the land will be listed on the National Trust’s heritage registry and preserved as a public space.

Premier McLaughlin said he’s confident all MLAs will support the motion to withdraw from the fund.

Local environmental advocacy group Save Cayman George Town Harbour named global environmental Hope Spot

Local environmental advocacy group Save Cayman announced on Friday 9 September the awarding of the greater George Town Harbour area as one of 14 new global Hope Spots.

Hope Spots are designated by Mission Blue, which is an initiative of the Sylvia Earle Alliance (SEA) to ignite public support for the protection of Hope Spots—special places that are vital to the health of the ocean and which Mission Blue calls “the blue heart of our planet.”

The news was announced at the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) World Conservation Congress, which took place from 1-10 September in Hawaii and was quickly snapped up by social media.Read the whole story here.

The government will be focusing very heavily on reducing the amount of waste people generate in Cayman then re-using and recycling what continues to be produced, but it has not ruled out waste-to-energy as part of the solution. The Department of Environmental Health has published the final reports from consultants hired by government to develop its future rubbish policies. With the solution to the George Town dump seen as a priority for the wider community, the current administration has been criticised for dragging its feet over the issue.Read the whole story here.

The average temperature in the Cayman Islands has risen steadily for the past four years due to the effects of global climate change, according to National Weather Service Director John Tibbetts. He said annual average temperatures have risen 1.2 degrees over the past four years, and he expects the trend of warmer weather and less rain to continue in the years to come.

Over the past 30 years, the average annual temperature rose from about 80 degrees Fahrenheit in 1985 to 82.9 degrees last year. Mr. Tibbetts said the temperature trend is following the model forecasters use to predict the impacts of global climate change on the weather in Cayman.

“We will get warmer and drier,” the Weather Service director said in an interview this week, and the changes to Cayman’s climate could have far-reaching effects on the islands. Read the whole story here.

Per Espen Stoknes, a Norwegian psychologist and economist, has been doing a lot of thinking about a question that has bedeviled climate scientists for years: Why have humans so far failed to deal with the looming threat posed by climate change?

That question is the focus of his recent book, What We Think About When We Try Not To Think About Global Warming, in which he analyzes what he calls the five psychological barriers that have made it difficult to deal realistically with the climate crisis. Those include: the distant nature of the problem (it’s far off in time and often in other parts of the globe); the Per Espen Stoknes doom-and-gloom scenarios about the impacts of climate change, which make people feel powerless to do anything about it; and the psychological defenses that people have to avoid feeling guilty about their own contributions to fossil fuel emissions. Read the whole story here.

Protesters have gathered more than 1,000 signatures for a petition to prevent construction of a $150 million cruise pier in George Town harbor.

The petition, organized by photographer Courtney Platt, urges government to drop the plan following the findings of an environmental impact assessment which concluded that a large area of coral reef would be destroyed as a result of the project.

Mr. Platt said it would be a “fiasco” if government went ahead with the cruise pier given the level of destruction outlined in the report.

Mr. Platt acknowledged that a petition alone may not be enough to sway government against the plan, which is supported by some local businesses, including Kirk Freeport and Tortuga Rum Company, whose owners believe jobs depend on a new dock being built.

He believes a people’s referendum may ultimately be required to stop the project. Protesters would need to gather signatures from 25 percent of registered voters in the Cayman Islands to trigger a referendum.

Mr. Platt said, “There has to be another solution beyond destroying the reef and the visibility in the harbor.”

He believes the quaintness of a tender operation and the clarity of the water in the harbor actually add to the experience for cruise tourism visitors.

The petition states, “We truly respect the great deal of good intentions, expense in time and resources that have gone into preparing this long-awaited proposal, but we believe the long-term cost to the environment is too great for the relatively short-term gain. Read the whole story here.

The growth in global carbon emissions stalled last year, according to data from the International Energy Agency.

It marks the first time in 40 years that annual CO2 emissions growth has remained stable, in the absence of a major economic crisis, the agency said.

Annual global emissions remained at 32 gigatonnes in 2014, unchanged from the previous year.

But the IEA warned that while the results were "encouraging", this was "no time for complacency". Read the whole story here.

The local Chamber of commerce is urging its members to take its on-line survey about the proposed cruise berthing facility in government before the web-based questionnaire closes at the end of this month. The Cayman Islands Government is proposing to develop a cruise berthing facility in the George Town harbour with two finger piers to accommodate the next generation of mega cruise ships. The construction of this new facility will require dredging of the sea floor, land reclamation activities, construction of retaining walls, drilling and blasting.

The debate about constructing cruise berthing facilities in George Town has raged for many years and the former UDP government committed to develop the facility during the last administration but the project was derailed as a result of a number of issues, but mostly because of the government’s failure to follow due process in its efforts to find a private sector partner to not only construct but also finance the project.

The issue has however remained controversial and although the cruise tourism sector is extremely eager to see the piers built not everyone in the tourism business is supportive and the wider public is divided over the need for such a costly project. Even though government will be seeking a partner to finance the project in the first instance, the investment will be recoupled from the cruise ship passenger fees.

The PPM is committed to the project and has already spent several million dollars on consultants, the strategic business cases and the environmental impact assessment but the Chamber is seeking a definitive position on the project from its more than 700 members.

“This survey has been developed to seek your views on the proposed project and the likely potential impacts associated with the construction and operational phases,” said Johann Moxam as he urged people to participate in the survey and make their voice heard. “All information provided will be kept confidential and will assist the Chamber Council with determining the membership's collective view on this proposed infrastructure project.”

Deputy Premier Moses Kirkconnell, who has responsibility for the Sister Islands, says the Cayman Islands’ new National Conservation Law adds significant protection from unsuitable or inappropriate developments. The DP also said he supports the establishment of a strategic development plan for Cayman Brac and Little Cayman to ensure that future developments on the two smaller Cayman Islands continue to align with the overarching economic, social, environmental and heritage objectives for the islands.

In light of reports from the Bahamas, where the construction of the 343-room Resorts World Bimini as well as a cruise dock on the tiny island of North Bimini has dismayed locals and environmentalists, Kirkconnell said that he considers that the current planning laws are robust enough to prevent unsuitable development in the Sister Islands. Read the whole story here.

Unusually high tides continue to cut across Cayman’s coasts, knocking over Casuarina trees along Frank Sound and eroding local beaches. The Meteorological Office said the high tides or “king tides,” affected by last month’s supermoon, are due to gradually subside.

Over the past 30 days, the astronomical phenomenon has led to tides rising up to 12 inches above sea level, according to data collected by a monitoring sensor at George Town harbor. Read the whole story here.

Small batteries are now being collected by the Department of Environmental Health’s (DEH) recycling programme. Batteries used in cellphones, cameras, pagers, two-way radios, calculators, small cordless tools, and other personal digital devices can be recycled.

This is in addition to the department’s current programme of collecting lead-acid batteries used in cars, boats, heavy equipment and other large vehicles. The Ministry of Health, Sports, Youth & Culture (HSY&C) and the Department of Environmental Health (DEH) are urging everyone to support recycling.

Minister responsible for Environmental Health, Hon. Osbourne Bodden noted: “Recycling is a key component to reduce overall waste volume. I am pleased that the Department of Environmental Health is adding another element to the recycling programme.”

The DEH is asking the public not to throw the batteries in the household trash, but to bring the batteries to the DEH battery recycling containers which will be located at the supermarkets, schools and central points throughout the three islands. Read the whole story here.

The Department of Environment urges the public to be mindful when driving on the roads over the next few weeks. It’s spawning season for land crabs and with no real gauge on how many crabs are left in our eco-system, the DOE is asking people to avoid crushing the animals as they make their way across roads to lay eggs in the sea.

“Crabs eat a lot of vegetarian matter. Not only do they eat vegetarian matter, they also take plant material into their burrows” explains DOE Terrestrial Research Officer, Jane Haakonsson.

“This is very important because they are actually taking nutrients as in plants matter; dead plant leaves, things like that and putting it back into the soil. So they’re enriching the soil for plant growth. And who knows if they’re not there to do that job what our coastlines would look like in terms of landscape,” she says.

Ms. Haakonsson also says land crabs are the only animals in Cayman who do this which makes them vital to our eco-system. See the video here.

The Cayman Islands is set to implement its new National Conservation Law, the territory announced this week.

The law is “signed, sealed and nearly delivered,” the government said in a statement.

The territory’s Department of Environment said the law would “will allow the Cayman Islands to protect and conserve endangered, threatened and endemic plants and their habitats as well as the variety of wildlife in the Cayman Islands.”

Accordingto Cayman Islands Environment Minister Wayne Panton, the government has been waiting on a pair of amending bills that were required before the law could take effect.

Panton said that, within the next two weeks, the British Overseas Territory’s government should have parts one and two of the law “in place.”

The goal is to bring the entire marine conservation law into effect by the fall.

The Cayman Islands Department of Environment (DOE) recently collaborated on a project with longtime partner Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (RGB Kew), UK, to locate a mysterious Mistletoe species Dendropemon caymanensis known to be located only on Little Cayman. There is very little known about this parasitic plant but records from botanist George Proctor, author of the “Flora of the Cayman Islands”, indicate that it is possibly located within the North Eastern interior of Little Cayman and is a parasite of the Headache Bush (Capparis cynophallophora) and the Black Candlewood (Erithalis fruticosa). No one has seen this plant since 1991 and there is no photographic record – just a single herbarium collection as proof of its existence.

In order to find this plant, the DOE and RGB Kew used a mini Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The UAV is a small flying machine with a camera; it weighs less than a kilogram (2 lbs) and is controlled by a sophisticated remote computer system. It takes aerial photographs on a pre-programmed course mapped out using a GPS coordinates. Read the whole story here.

Cayman joins over 190 nations in celebrating Earth Day on 22 April. The Department of Environment is encouraging the public to take part in the Earth Day challenge.

The challenges include planting a tree, reduce carbon footprint by carpooling, do an outdoor activity, buy local produce and refuse plastics by not using plastics bags or bottles.
There are a number of Earth Day events taking place, including a road side clean and reef clean up.

The learn more about the challenge and see the calendar of events visit the Department of Environment’s website.

Could the days of fossil fuels be over in Cayman? Billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson is looking to wean ten islands off those sources of energy.

“I am having people come to me and say we cannot afford to pay our mortgage and electrical bill this month. We have to decide – do we pay our light bill or our mortgage,” said Nicholas Robson of Cayman Institute.

Environment Minister Hon. Wayne Panton tells Cayman 27 he and Finance Minister Hon. Marco Archer will attend next month’s summit in the BVI.

Southern Cross Club on Little Cayman has once again received the Green Globe stamp of approval as resort whose operations are environmentally sustainable.

Southern Cross has been a proud Green Globe member for years and as early as 2004, the resort installed solar panels as part of its conservation efforts. In addition, energy-efficient air conditioners and toilets in all guest units along with strict monitoring of the water and electricity use have been integral to operations at the hotel. An organic garden that grows vegetables and herbs along with waste sorting, reuse and recycling also add the its efforts to be kind to the environment.

“We are all very proud at Southern Cross Club to earn the prestigious Green Globe re-certification. We are one of the few certified resorts in the Cayman Islands, and the only one in the Sister Islands of Cayman Brac and Little Cayman,” stated Jennifer Mills, Manger of Southern Cross. Read the whole story here.

Governor backs environment

Cayman News Service
12 September 2013

After more than a decade of waiting, 2013 could be the year that Cayman’s natural land environment finally receives lawful protection. Minister Wayne Panton, who has responsibility for the environment, has already made a commitment to steer the National Conservation Law through before the year is out. Now the new governor has added her voice to calls for responsible management of the local environment. During her acceptance speech in the Legislative Assembly last Friday, the natural world was one of the issues singled out by Helen Kilpatrick. Although it is not part of her office’s direct responsibility, the UK’s latest representative said she was committed to the management of the islands’ natural resources.

Department of Environment Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie and her team have lived in hope that the National Conservation Law (NCL) will make it onto the statute books before it is too late, and they have persistently warned that the ecological clock has been ticking down for many of the islands' unique species, which are in serious danger of disappearing without proper protection.

Ebanks-Petrie has also warned that Cayman cannot continue to develop without giving the same consideration to environmental issues as it does to socio and economic ones, and argued against continuing to allow major projects to begin without carrying out environmental impact assessments. Read the whole story here.

Encouraging year for turtle nesting

Cayman 27 News
2 September 2013

The Department of Environment (DOE) says turtles tagged in previous years and earlier on in the season are returning to the beaches to nest again. Every year from May through November Grand Cayman’s beaches are visited by nesting sea turtles.

Janice Blumenthal, DOE’s Research Officer, says so far it has been a really encouraging year for nesting.

“We’ve found about 240 nests. It is important to remember that each turtle can lay more than one nest in a nesting season, typically 3 to 6 nest. So each nest isn’t made by one individual turtle. We are trying to calculate the size of the nesting population this year by doing night work. We are tagging on the beach and trying to figure out how big our nesting population is.”

The DOE is still counting the number of turtle nests and say they are hoping there will be more to come in November. See the video here.

Beer fuels shark conservation effort

Caymanian Compass
15 August 2013

In a nod to the recent airing of the hit television series “Shark Week”, and to celebrate the first anniversary of locally-brewed White Tip Lager, the Cayman Islands Brewery last week presented a cheque for $24,004 to the Department of Environment’s marine conservation efforts.

The conservation efforts, which benefit from a portion of the sales from each bottle and can of lager sold, help fund initiatives like the Cayman Sharks and Dolphin Project.

Before presenting the cheque, brewery spokesman Matthew Leslie said that almost a half-million bottles of the lager were sold in the first year of production.

“The main thing is to make sure that we get the word out that killing sharks isn’t cool,” he said. “You got 73 million sharks per year being killed and that’s a lot. The white tip shark, which is what our beer is named after, is probably the most hunted because of their large fins.”

Although shark finning is not a popular practice in the Caribbean, the region is still no safe haven for sharks. Read the whole story here.

The role of the environment a complex question

What’s Hot Magazine
4 July 2013

The role the environment plays in our lives is an interesting one. It is complex. Looking at the recent split of portfolios the Cayman Islands Government has undertaken, in the same manner as her international counterparts when a new government comes to power, the coupling of the environment portfolio is often an uneasy bedfellow.

The reason for this? Well, the environment has a plethora of meanings that are not always easy to define. Let’s compare the environment and the role it has on our lives, in comparison to some of its political adversaries. Read whole story here.

National Trust expands mastic reserve

National Trust for the Cayman Islands
2 July 2013

An additional 8 acres has been added to the Mastic Reserve bringing the total amount of land protected by the National Trust in the Reserve to 843 acres. Aiming to protect and rejuvenate a very rare habitat of great importance to Grand Cayman and its biodiversity, the Trust hopes to acquire a total of 1,397 acres through additional fundraising for its Land Reserve Fund.

"The Mastic Reserve is key to the conservation of Cayman Islands biodiversity. Preserving this land is vital in protecting our native plants and animals. The forest performs many other functions; it enhances rainfall and reduces run-off, helping to maintain our groundwater and protect our reefs and it keeps the island cooler; it removes carbon and pollutants from the atmosphere, and it provides locals and visitors alike with a unique opportunity to connect with nature," said Stuart Mailer, Field Officer of the National Trust and renowned Mastic tour guide.

Guided tours of the Mastic Trail are available Tuesday through Friday, and occasional weekends. For details on the National Trust's Land Reserve Fund or guided Mastic tours contact info@nationaltrust.org.ky or call 749-1121.

Rock iguana ‘Nelson’ reappears

Caymanian Compass
6 June 2013

It’s been nearly a year since Nelson, a large Sister Islands rock iguana that was injured on a Cayman Brac road, returned to her home on the island after getting medical treatment in Grand Cayman and sheltering in a Department of Environment officer’s bathroom.

For several months after she was released back into the wild, there was no sign on the Brac of Nelson, leading those who had been involved in her rescue and recovery to worry that she may not have recovered after all.

But Bonnie Scott, who played a big role in saving the iguana, said that Nelson was spotted late last month and seems to be doing well.

“For weeks, I’ve been hearing about an iguana crossing Dennis Foster Road near the high school and today I saw it basking and got a good zoom of the beads. It’s Nelson,” she said. “I’ve been asked repeatedly whatever happened to Nelson, but didn’t know until today. I think she has been doing what iguanas should and enjoying life in the wild since, until recently, no one had seen her since last July.” Read whole story here.

Cayman 27
11 April 2013

The Cayman Islands have received a poor grade for the protection of the environment. A report from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds says it’s because the islands do not have a National Conservation Law in place.

The Society gave Cayman a weak ranking among all British Overseas Territories for species protection, site protection, development control and accountability.

Minister of Environment Mark Scotland says his government hasn’t passed the law as its draft form still does not have general approval. Meanwhile, the Department of Environment says it is not surprised by the low ranking and the head of the DOE Gina Ebanks-Petrie is calling for urgent passage of the National Conservation Law.

Although the law has not been passed, the DOE says sea life is well protected under the recently amended marine conservation law.

Value of Mastic Trail Assessed

A visiting scientist from the United Kingdom has been evaluating the value of the Mastic Trail in Grand Cayman to determine exactly how much it means to the Cayman Islands.

Research scientist Michael MacDonald from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds spent three weeks in Grand Cayman in December assisting the National Trust for the Cayman Islands examine the Mastic Trail and its surrounding forest to see how valuable it is in terms of its carbon storage, water lens and tourism.

“The idea behind what we are trying to do is look at conservation sites, for example, the Mastic Forest, to try to look at other things they provide in addition to conserving biodiversity – birds and plants,” Mr. MacDonald said. “The idea is to demonstrate the other things it provides, which we call ecosystem services.” Read the whole story here.

OT director says CI needs environmental protection

Asked what he believed Cayman should be doing to improve its financial situation, the environment was the first thing the senior FCO technocrat pointed to. Read the whole story here.

Marine mammal specialists are backing the Cayman Islands Department of Environment’s message to the public to avoid interacting in the water with the lone male dolphin that has made his  home in local waters.

Three experts from the United States, who visited Grand Cayman last week to observe the dolphin, nicknamed Stinky, say that it’s important that people resist the temptation to get in the water and swim, touch or feed the animal.

Their advice for divers who encounter the dolphin is to avoid interacting with him if possible. Read the whole story here.

Scientists have confirmed local anecdotal reports that the number of stingrays at the Sandbar  are decreasing.

Brad Wetherbee from the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Rhode Island, working in conjunction with the Guy Harvey Institute and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment, has been carrying out censuses on the local stingray population since 2002. In his last check in 2008, he found more than 100 stingrays at the Sandbar at any given time, but on his most recent trip this year, he counted or tagged just 61.

The numbers he found during similar censuses in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2008 showed consistent results, but when he returned to Grand Cayman in January this year, he was able to confirm that the reports of declining numbers  were correct.

“In January this year, we went out ... to catch them and tag them. In previous years, we easily caught 100. This January, we caught 61,” said Mr. Wetherbee. This month, when he carried out another census, he found 57, he said. Read the whole story here.

Environmentalism has failed. Over the past 50 years, environmentalists have succeeded in raising awareness, changing logging practices, stopping mega-dams and offshore drilling, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. But we were so focused on battling opponents and seeking public support that we failed to realize these battles reflect fundamentally different ways of seeing our place in the world. And it is our deep underlying worldview that determines the way we treat our surroundings.

We have not, as a species, come to grips with the explosive events that have changed our relationship with the planet. For most of human existence, we lived as nomadic hunter-gatherers whose impact on nature could be absorbed by the resilience of the biosphere. Even after the Agricultural Revolution 10,000 years ago, farming continued to dominate our lives. We cared for nature. People who live close to the land understand that seasons, climate, weather, pollinating insects and plants are critical to our well-being. Read the whole story here.

People who visited Camana Bays market area last week were treated to a fun dance routine by a flash mob whose members wanted to spread the message of changing consumer behaviour to help the environment.

Dressed in black Agent for Change T-shirts, more than 50 people, made a surprise appearance at the market.

A flash mob is a term for a sudden assembly of people in a public area to perform an act, who then quickly disperse.

This flash mobs performance was held to highlight the Corporate Green Team Network Cayman BECOMEs 2012 green initiative, Agent for Change.

The initiative aims to raise consumer consciousness and engage individual effort to effect change in consumer behaviour and habits to benefit the environment.

Camana Bays market area was expanded for the Earth Day celebrations, which were held there on Wednesday, 18 April. The market showcased earth-friendly products and services, as well as island-grown produce and plants, and included activities and information from many organisations and businesses, which help make Cayman more sustainable. Read whole story here.

High school students are taking up scuba and diving into Caymans waters while also doing their bit for the environment.

Clifton Hunter High School teacher Hamish Hamilton and 16-year-old student Joseph Burey, armed with trash bags and scuba gear, headed underwater near the wreck of the Cali in George Town harbour Tuesday to pick up litter and spruce up the popular dive and snorkelling site.

The cleanup is part of an initiative to teach school students to dive and to give back to the community at the same time.

Mr. Hamilton, who is a certified dive instructor who teaches his own students and members of the High Schools Dive Club to scuba dive, hopes to do a similar cleanup with more students at the Lobster Pot dive shop soon.

Were certifying students to dive and getting Caymanian kids into the water, which hardly any of them do, said Mr. Hamilton, as he and Joseph suited up outside Divers Down dive shop, which provided free air tanks and weights for Tuesdays dive. Read whole story here.

The Cayman Islands Brewerys latest addition to their lineup, White Tip Lager, recently was crowned the best lager at the Caribbean Rum and Beer Festival in Barbados.

This is the second year running that the brewery takes the crown, as CayLight won the title in 2010. This year, it had to settle for second place behind White Tip. Ironshore Bock also took silver in the category for strong beers.

With three international judges blind tasting 30 beers, that is quite impressive for us, said James Mansfield of Cayman Islands Brewery. Next time that we go to the brewers convention it will be interesting to see what they think of us now, as we are still only 4 1/2 years old, compared to other breweries like Banks Barbados, which is 45 years old.

A unique aspect of White Tip Lager is that a percentage of the sales goes to the Department of Environments shark conservation programmes.

The actual link-up with the Department of Environment was unique, and we will be cutting the first cheque in January, Mr. Mansfield said. Read the whole story here.

A groundswell of public support generated by Guy Harvey's latest film The Mystery of the Grouper Moon has prompted the Marine Conservation Board of the Cayman Islands to extend a ban on fishing the Nassau grouper spawning aggregation site near Little Cayman.

The Board, this week, voted to extend the current moratorium another eight years after reviewing extensive research conducted by REEF (Reef Environmental Education Foundation) and Oregon State University and a public education campaign supported by the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation (GHOF) and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment (DOE). The existing ban, in place since 2003, was due to expire at the end of the year. The penalty for catching Nassau grouper in a spawning aggregation site between November and March is up to one year in prison or up to $500,000 in fines.

"The Cayman Islands are celebrating the 25th anniversary since the formation of the first marine park here, so it is fitting that such a strong conservation effort has been made by the MCB and that common sense has prevailed," said Dr. Harvey.

In filming the research work being conducted by REEF, Guy Harvey and award-winning filmmaker George Schellenger created a compelling and informative 45-minute documentary The Mystery of the Grouper Moon. The film's purpose was to document the research and make the results available in layman's language to the residents of the Cayman Islands. The documentary (for a preview go to http://www.guyharvey.com/home.php?id=5) was shot entirely in the Cayman Islands and was supported by REEF and the DOE. The GHOF also supported the education campaign with custom artwork.

More work, however, needs to be done, according to Dr. Harvey, an internationally celebrated marine artist and a professor of marine biology, who makes his home in the Cayman Islands. See the whole story here.

The Department of Environment has launched an online survey to ask the public if it thinks the marine environment in he Cayman Islands is worth saving.

The survey follows a series of public meetings in which the department outlined the threats to the Islands marine parks and measures taken to protect them.

The results of the online survey, along with other public feedback, will be included in a full report due out in April, which will be based on the findings of a three-year Darwin Initiative research project conducted by the Department of Environment with Bangor Universitys School of Ocean Sciences and the Nature Conservancy in the United States.

Laura Richardson, a research support officer with the Department of Environment, said people have until February, 2012, to fill out the short survey, but encouraged participants to complete it as soon as they receive it while it is still fresh in their minds.

"The responses will certainly help inform the options we present to the public next April on how the parks and marine protection may be enhanced through this project." Read the whole story here.

Beginning this weekend, every second Saturday of each month will be plastic bag-free days in the Cayman Islands.

Last year, local supermarkets replaced their nondegradable plastic shopping bags with biodegradable alternatives and started charging 5 cents per shopping bags in a bid to cut down on the number of bags ending up in Caymans landfill.

That first phase of the Cayman BECOME campaign brought an initial reduction of as much as 80 per cent in the number of plastic bags sold in supermarkets. Prior to that, an estimated 12 million plastic bags were being disposed of every year in Grand Cayman.

Now the Corporate Green Team Network is embarking on the next phase to cut down on the amount of plastic finding its way to Mount Trashmore.

Starting this Saturday, 10 December, on every second Saturday of every month, supermarkets will not hand out any plastic shopping bags, in a bid to encourage shoppers to either bring their own bags from home or purchase environmentally-friendly, re-usable bags. Read the whole story here.

The new spa at Jalousie Plantation on St. Lucia was built from indigenous woods.

Hotels around the globe are making significant efforts to go green. Though many Caribbean resorts have been slow to embrace the green movement, the majority of them have spent the last few years playing catch-up. Whether its relying on local farmers and fishermen for produce, creating awareness about marine ecology, using earth-friendly construction materials, or offering travelers give-back initiatives, its clear the islands are engaged in some impressive environmental activity. Here is a look at programs aimed at maintaining and protecting Caribbean landscapes.

With more conscientious chefs putting down roots, the reliance on local farms has blossomed. Eric Riperts Blue at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman (Seven Mile Beach, 345-943-9000, www.ritz carlton.com) carries a fish fund to patronize local fishermen and farmers, and offers 20 seats at Lunch in the Kitchen, where the chef de cuisine shares the highlights of the catch of the day. Read whole story here.

Participating in lionfish culling dives is about to become a great deal more affordable for residents in possession of the required culling licence, thanks to Fosters Food Fair IGAs donation of $20,000 to the Cayman Islands Tourism Association.

When Fosters joined the Cayman Become Campaign [an environmental initiative] in June 2010, and introduced reusable cloth shopping bags, they announced that the five cents charged for every biodegradable shopping bag used would be reinvested in an environmental fund, said Ayiesha de Cocteau, marketing manager at Fosters. This fund is then used to support a number of environmental programmes in the Cayman Islands. The lionfish culling initiative is one programme we are passionate about as the fish have now become a menace in our waters and continue to eradicate too many of a smaller marine animals. In an effort to continue the preservation of our dive sites we have partnered with CITA on this initiative, added Ms de Cocteau. Read whole story here.

Despite the continued breeding problems at the Cayman Islands Turtle Farm officials said that the annual release will still go ahead this year during Pirates Week. The farm said that the release will include 9 yearlings and up to 40 advanced hatchlings, depending on sponsorship. According to a release from the farm the yearlings will be fitted with Passive Integrated Transponders (PIT tags) which are micro transponders encased in a glass case about the size of a large grain of rice. These electronic tags are injected under the skin and can only be detected with a scanner allowing researchers around the world to identify individual animals and better understand migration and nesting patterns.

Last season, five females tagged and released from the Cayman Turtle Farm in the 1980s, returned to lay their own eggs on Cayman beaches. Read whole story here.

Starting next week, local primary schools will begin competing to see which of them can collect the most old Cayman Islands Yellow Pages directories as part of the second annual telephone directory recycling programme, Yellow2Green. The main goal of the three week initiative, which kicks-off Tuesday 15 November, is to keep old phone books out of the landfill, but primary students can win cash prizes for their school while they are helping the environment. CIYP is also offering a prize to the member of the community who comes closest to guessing the total number of directories collected for recycling.The school with the most directories per student will be awarded a cash prize of $1,500, with $1,000 going to the second place school and $700 for third place.

The Environmental Impact Report on the East End Seaport was
delivered to the Department of Environment on Wednesday, 11 May, and was released on the projects website this week.

Joe Imparato, of the developer City Services (Cayman) Ltd. said making the report available to the public was something he consistently said he would do when it was completed.

The rational, objective concerns generally fell in to two main areas the risk of coastal flooding and the impact on the water lens, he said in a press release issued Wednesday. It made the most sense to go to the District of East End when I had factual answers and information to address those concerns. Read the story here.

If you're living in Cayman, your carbon footprint may be one of the largest in the world with constant travelling and cooling your home all pumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Well, a new not-for-profit business is on a mission to offset Cayman's emissions.

While sea turtle remains a popular national dish in the Cayman Islands, the public is being asked to join a world wide effort to halt the decline of these endangered species. The Department of Environment (DoE) is appealing to the public to aid in the recovery of Cayman Islands sea turtle nesting populations by reporting turtle nests to a new DoE Turtle Hotline 938-NEST (938-6378) whenever sea turtle tracks or nests are found. The goal is to find all turtle nests and protect them from the time they are laid until they hatch two months later.

DoE Research Officer Dr Janice Blumenthal explained that during the turtle nesting season DoE staff and volunteers patrol beaches four days per week finding and protecting nests but they are not able to visit every beach every day so rely on the public to assist them.

She added, While sea turtles spend the majority of their lives in the ocean, from May to November females make their way on shore to lay their eggs. On the beach, nesting turtles, turtle nests, and baby turtles are extremely vulnerable. We hope that with the new and easy to remember Turtle Hotline number, members of the public will be better able to assist in sea turtle conservation efforts.

Data collected by DoE over the past decade show that Cayman Islands sea turtle nesting has begun to increase but many nests are in highly developed areas such as Seven Mile Beach. This makes nests susceptible to threats such as lights near the beach, beach driving, heavy equipment operation, bonfires, and poaching. The Turtle Hotline makes it possible for members of the public to help by alerting DoE when they spot turtle nests or see a nesting turtle or baby turtles in danger.

In addition to reporting nests, beachfront property owners and residents can assist by following the DoEs guidelines for making beaches safe for turtles:

Reduce beach lighting: turn off, redirect, or shield any lights that can be seen from the beach during the turtle nesting season (contact DoE for more information). Lights near the beach can lead baby turtles away from the sea and result in their death. Lighting may also deter nesting females from coming ashore.
Remain quiet and stay at a distance if you see a nesting turtle. Flashlights, loud noises, or getting too close might cause the turtle to abandon her nesting attempt.
Remove obstacles such as beach chairs and recreational equipment from the beach at night.
Do not drive on the beachthis can crush turtle nests. Contact DoE before using beach cleaning machines or heavy equipment.
Protect beach vegetation. Vegetation blocks light from buildings, stabilizes the beach, and encourages turtles to nest.
Do not have bonfires on the beach in the summeruse a designated BBQ pit.
Do not rake or cover turtle tracks. Department of Environment staff and volunteers use the tracks to find and protect nests.
Call DoEs Turtle Hotline if you find a turtle track, nest, or baby turtle.
Remember that sea turtles are protected under Cayman Islands Law and turtle poachers face steep fines and imprisonment. If you see persons harming or taking sea turtles or their eggs call DoE Enforcement or the police (911).

Contact Janice Blumenthal at DoE for more information or to volunteer for the Marine Turtle Beach Monitoring Programme. DoE Turtle Hotline: 938-NEST. General: 949-8469. Emergencies: 916-4271 or 911. Email:DoE@gov.ky.

Louisiana State University Professor, Dr. Harry H. Roberts, said dredging a channel in the North Sound could change it significantly and many others are saying that government needs to do its homework before the digging starts.

Caymanian Compass
21 January, 2011

The Cayman Islands Government has decided to cap and remediate the existing George Town Landfill and establish a new solid waste management facility at a site to be determined.

Premier McKeeva Bush made the announcement during the Fidelity Cayman Business Outlook at The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman on Thursday morning.

With our encouragement, Dart [Enterprises] has agreed to take over and responsibly cap and remediate the existing site, Mr. Bush said. Furthermore, Dart has agreed to provide a site of similar acreage to the Crown and establish the platform for a new solid waste management facility. Read the whole story here.

1 November 2010
Cayman Islands Yellow Pages Press Release
George Town, Grand Cayman

'Yellow2Green' programme aims to keep 60 tons of old phonebooks out of Caymans landfill in 2010

The next twenty days will see one of the most important recent environmental initiatives as the Cayman Islands Yellow Pages (CIYP) launches Yellow2Green, a programme designed to recycle old phone books into insulation for homes. The launch coincides with the release of the 2011 Cayman Islands telephone directory and will run from November 1^st 20^th.

Our intent is to keep 60 tons of phone books from ending up in the landfill and to elevate everyones awareness about the importance of recycling and conservation, explains CIYP Marketing Manager Eileen Keens. This is the pilot programme and were very hopeful that everyone in Grand Cayman will participate businesses and individuals alike. If were successful, this will become an annual event to include Cayman Brac and eventually Little Cayman.

Theres absolutely no down-side to this, adds Ms. Keens, its easy for people to take their old phone books to any one of 11 drop-off points island-wide but, more importantly, its a benefit to our country and our environment its the right, responsible thing to do.

The programme includes the Yellow2Green School Challenge, where all primary schools can compete to win a pizza party and up to $1500. The school that collects the most books, per student body, wins. This is a great way to get kids excited about recycling this is about their future, so its critical that they value preservation and grasp the concept of personal responsibility, explains Ms. Keens.

CIYP will accept any dry phone book, even if its not one of theirs. All books will be shipped via Thompson Shipping Line to Tampa where theyll be 100% recycled into GreenFiber insulation, an all-natural, high quality fiber insulation product used for homes. GreenFiber is North Americas leading natural fiber manufacturer and they have been working with communities across the US, and now in the Caribbean, to help keep over one million tons of paper out of landfills.

This really is a big deal. Were pretty sure everyone agrees that our landfill doesnt need any more unnecessary waste, each one of those recycled directories is one step closer to a greener community adds Ms. Keens. And were thankful to all our sponsors for making it happen.

All businesses and individuals are encouraged to deliver as many old phone books as they can to any drop-off location by November 20^th. For businesses with large amounts of books, the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce has been designated as the primary corporate collection site at their new Governors Square office.

All Fosters Food Fair locations island-wide
Chamber of Commerce, Governors Square
Camana Bay
LIME Galleria Plaza
LIME Anderson Square
Hurleys Grand Harbour
Kirk Supermarket

BB&P
Camana Bay
Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce
Fosters Food Fair
GreenFiber
Hurleys
Kirk Supermarket
Lemmies Trucking Services
LIME
NCI Services
Thompson Line
Vision Marketing

The much anticipated request for proposals to deal with the Cayman Islands George Town dump has been officially released. Government is now inviting proposals for the redevelopment of the landfill also known as Mount Trashmore, reports The Cayman News Service.

Although the government had previously expressed its preference for a Waste to Energy Facility (WtE), it is reported to also be inviting tenders for Comprehensive Solid Waste Disposal Management Facilities (CSWDMF).

According to a release from government, it is seeking an entity that will manage all waste generated in Grand Cayman through the establishment of a CSWDMF and WTEF, while enhancing the island's recycling capabilities and producing green by-products such as biofuels and composting.

"All entities interested in providing a Comprehensive Solid Waste Disposal Management Facility and Waste to Energy Facility Facility in Grand Cayman should respond to the Request for Proposal by noon, 19 November 2010," the release from the Department of Environmental Health stated.

"The George Town landfill currently receives all types of waste and recyclables. The existing method of land filling municipal waste is not sustainable," government officials said.

Entities making a bid to solve what, at 80 feet high (25 metres), has become one of the country's biggest problems, will also be required to provide future waste disposal management options for the Sister Islands.

"The issue of a Request for Proposal is a long anticipated and welcomed step in the process of redevelopment of the George Town landfill," said the Minister with responsibility for public works, Juliana O'Connor-Connolly. "The Ministry is seeking an entity that will provide a practical and reasonable long-term waste management solution for the Cayman Islands."

Mount Trashmore is considered the highest point on Grand Cayman at well over 80 feet and certainly its worst eyesore. As the dump has not been lined it has been leaking into the North Sound for several years, causing major pollution problems for the marine environment.

Tackling the dump has been a controversial issue for some time but more recently a group of activists under the banner of Waste Initiatives & Sustainable Environments (WISE) began a campaign to oppose the concept of mining and incinerating the dump as its sole solution. The group has instead suggested capping and remediating the landfill. WISE proposes turning to a new eco-waste management park elsewhere on the island, which would focus on composting, recycling, reuse and the reduction of waste in general with limited incineration and ultimately zero discarded or dumped garbage.

The activists have said that incineration will create further pollution, as will the mining of the current landfill, which will release dust and debris into the air as well as generate persistent bad odours during the lengthy period of mining, which they warn could go on for years.

However, the relocation of the waste management facility has caused controversy, with no district welcoming the idea of a new, albeit modem, 'dump' in its neighbourhood.

The tender invites proposals that will deal with the landfill on the current site and it is expected that the existing rubbish at the dump will be mined and burned in a waste to energy conversion and it is hoped that there will also be some recycling undertaken at the site.

Interested parties must be mindful of the noon deadline on 19 November, as late submissions will not be accepted. Excluded from the RFP will be the collection of residential and commercial waste; this will still fall under the responsibilities of the Department of Environmental Health.

Cayman News Service
Saturday 14 August 2010

A report published by the United Nations last month has revealed that critically important mangroves continue to be lost at a rate three to four times higher than land-based forests. The news comes at a time when the Cayman Islands own proposed national conservation law is still at the consultation stage with no guarantee that it will make it to the Legislative Assembly next month as was hoped. During a series of public meetings in July when the Department of Environment director spelt out the pressing need for a conservation law here, Gina Ebanks-Petrie, noted the massive loss of mangroves that Cayman has suffered over the years and their current precarious protection. The NCL, she said, would offer a way of protecting what remains of the country's mangrove areas.

In 1980 there was over 5,000 acres of wetland and mangrove habitat on the western side of Grand Cayman. Today just a fraction of the mangroves remains, with more than 66 percent of those areas being lost. Read the whole story here. (Photo by Dennie Warren Jr)

When the Ching-chings start dive-bombing unsuspecting tourists walking through George Town, it is clearly nesting season.

Unfortunately, with nesting season come baby birds in need of help, and although Cayman Wildlife Rescue makes every attempt to restore nestlings to their wild families, this is not always possible.

The organisation is appealing for volunteers to hand-raise baby birds for release back into the wild. Read whole story here.

Cayman residents can have their say on the newest version of the National Conservation Bill.

Environment Minister Mark Scotland wants to bring the bill to the Legislative Assembly before years end.

I believe that we need comprehensive conservation legislation to adequately protect Caymans future, Mr. Scotland said. I also hold that the environment is an issue that affects everyone, and therefore it is vital to gauge public opinion on the matter.

The Department of Environment has started public consultations with key stakeholder meetings and the launch of an explanatory guide to the proposed National Conservation Law.

In addition, district meetings will start the week of 5 July. The department will announce times and venues as soon as possible. Read whole story here.

Plastic bag charge starts today

Starting today, supermarkets will be implementing a new 5 cent charge for plastic bags as part of the Cayman BECOME campaign to encourage the Cayman Islands public to bring their own reusable bags when they shop.

To prepare for the big day, cashiers and baggers have received training from the Cayman BECOME education and training committee.

We are aiming to adapt the interaction between cashier and customer for when the charge is introduced, said Senior Sustainable Development Officer at the Department of Environment Joni Kirkconnell, one of the trainers.

She said cashiers are now being urged to ask customers directly if they have their own bags with them and if not they will ask whether the customer needs a bag and wishes to purchase a reusable bag, or purchase plastic bags. This should not only make people think about bringing their own bags in the future, but it will also make cashiers more aware of how many plastic bags they are providing, and customers more aware of how many plastic bags they are using, said Ms Kirkconnell. Read whole story.

The Observer on Sunday - Local News
By: Basia Pioro McGuire

The way we think about waste in Cayman is at the forefront these days, with reminders about Mt. Trashmores state popping up with news that some of the sites scrap metal is now being shipped off Island.

The sites appearance from the Esterly Tibbets bypass may seem to indicate fewer junked cars, but the overwhelming feature, the 60-foot tall mound of garbage, still dominates the Grand Cayman skyline.

The Observer, the Compass the Journal have all reported extensively on Caymans trash situaiton and some of the available options. Currently, Dart the company, behind the massive Camana Bay development located adjacent to the hundred-acre landfill site, is holding town hall meetings with various stakeholders to explore possible solutions to the dump dilemma. Read whole story.

Reusable bags catching on

Local supermarkets are reporting an increase in demand for reusable shopping bags, and thanks may be due to the Cayman BECOME campaign.

The campaign, which launched at the beginning of April, is encouraging the Cayman Islands public to bring their own reusable bags when they shop and in doing so to become plastic free.

As part of this campaign, the major local supermarkets will start charging 5 cents per plastic bag from 9 June onwards.

Over the month of April we sold six times the monthly average of reusable bags that we were getting through last year, said Raquel Solomon of Fosters Food Fair.

Caymanian Compass

The vast majority of respondents in last weeks caycompass.com online poll say that when it comes to being green, they conserve but admit they could be greener.

Of the 297 respondents, 204 - or 68 per cent - when asked how green they were, answered that they conserved energy, but could do more for the environment.

One respondent boasted that he was greener than most of his neighbours, while another said: I am very conservative, not wasteful. Re-use!

One respondent echoed a sentiment often repeated in Cayman. It would be helpful if there were more options here for recycling.

Nine of the respondents, or 3 per cent of those who took part, gave themselves a pat on the back, saying They dont come any greener than me, while 26 people, or 9 per cent of respondents, insisted they were not green at all and dont plan on turning green...read full story.

The groundbreaking ceremony for Cayman’s first solar farm was held in Bodden Town on Monday, 9 May.

The 5 megawatt(MW) solar project will allow the Caribbean Utilities Company (CUC) to reduce exhaust gas emissions and the use of imported fossil fuels thereby promoting a greener environment. Read the whole story

George Town Harbour named global environmental Hope Spot
Cayman Reporter
September 14, 2016