SIX MEN’S BAY in St Peter is the largest remaining coastal pond on the West Coast and a marina should only be constructed there if the developers are prepared to replace what will be lost by destroying the pond.
This is the recommendation of Professor Robin Mahon, director of the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill. “The proposal to excavate [Six Men’s] into a marina should only be approved if the developers are obliged to mitigate the loss of function by building water-retention structures upstream that prevent the water from entering the marina and also to replace that function by contributing to the enhancement of other ponds along the coast, such as the ones at Weston and Holetown.
Source: Nation Newspaper
The BU family would have recognized by now that we are concerned about the lack of a Physical Development Plan for Barbados. We have been supported in our cause by several members of the BU family with Anonymous x and Sundowner leading the way. In fact there is a parallel between the lack of an immigration policy and our physical development approach in Barbados. Noticeable in the developed countries is the forward planning which is evident when building roads, bridges, cities, industrial estates etc. An integral aspect to planning physical development is to anticipate the impact physical development will have on the eco-system and takes steps to mitigate.
It is routine as far as we know for the Town Planning department to request environmental impact studies to be undertaken and submitted as part of the request for development permissions. Barbadians to date have been loathed to participate in this process which encourages feedback from citizens. We are prepared to say that Barbadians have themselves partially to blame for the runaway position which now exist i.e. Town Planning and developers moving ahead with development and not factoring John Citizen’s position. An example of this is the environmental impact study which was undertaken in the ABC Highway Project. Our recollection suggests that such an important piece to that project was not appropriately managed in the interest of Barbadians.
They are some who have resigned themselves to the fact the West Coast development has passed the point of no return. We listened to Minister Richard Sealy who suggested as much a few weeks ago on national radio. However in the case of the Six Men’s Marina Project it has been suggested that if the development is not MANAGED, it will have negative consequences to our eco-systems and coastline in the future.
The UWI researcher called for the few saltwater ponds left on the West Coast to be protected and enhanced with vegetation.He said that if such steps were not being taken, developers were in effect getting a “free ride on the backs of taxpayers” since it was taxpayers who eventually had to bear the cost of replacing the lost services these ecosystems used to provide; it was also taxpayers who lost a source of cultural identity, natural beauty and opportunity for recreation by the destruction of these ecosystems.
Source: Nation Newspaper
The time has come for Barbadians to start to pay attention to how current development will impact the environment in years to come. We have an obligation as human beings on the earth to protect our environment. If for some of us we can’t connect to such a noble ideal, we may consider doing it for our children and future generations. We have to rely on our environment to survive as island states. The decisions we take about our physical development MUST factor for breakage in the future. As the Americans say, it is a no-brainer. Why then do we have the unsustainable position of out of control physical development in Barbados?
Some say it can be described in one word, GREED!
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