World Heritage site in Belize comes under UNESCO scrutiny
Posted: 27/03/2009 - 09:38 AM
Author: Rowland A. Parks
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Committee (UNESCO) has dispatched two officials from its World Heritage Headquarters in Paris, France to conduct an investigation into dredging activities that have reportedly taken place at one of Belize’s main Reserve sites.
Edward Muller and Marc Patry are presently in Belize on a working visit. The two UNESCO officials are conducting public discussion and tomorrow, Friday, will be touring the sites where the dredging occurred.
On December 6, 1996, UNESCO formally adopted the Belize Barrier Reef system as a World Heritage Site. What this means is that Belize, through its government, has pledged to preserve the site for posterity and the rest of humanity. That is indeed a tall order for a small nation which also seeks to develop its resources to bring a better life for its people.
“Seven marine protected areas along the Barrier Reef and its adjacent atolls were nominated and accepted by the World Heritage Committee to form what will now be called the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System. The seven areas are Bacalar Chico, the Blue Hole at Lighthouse Reef, Half Moon Caye, Glovers Reef, South Water Caye, Laughing Bird Caye and the Sapodilla Cayes.” So stated the government press release in 1996, announcing Belize’s nomination and acceptance to the club of special nations holding something in trust for the rest of humanity.
But all is not going well for this custodian nation of the Western Hemisphere’s largest barrier reef. Things have happened to the reef that are of national and international significance. For instance, this past January, the Westerhaven, a cargo ship registered in the Netherlands, ran aground on the reef, causing substantial damages. Added to that, in the not too distant past, there has been dynamiting of the reef, dredging and filling - all in the name of development.
Information recently reached the World Heritage Headquarters in Paris that there was some dredging on the South Water Caye Marine Reserve. This information sent shockwaves through the World Heritage staff, raising a red flag on Belize’s status. Thus, the World Heritage people sent Muller and Patry to Belize to get to the root of the matter.
More alarm bells will ring at UNESCO’s World Heritage Headquarters when they discover that there are two development proposals that, if they go ahead, will be done right in the middle of South Water Caye Reserve.
Yum Balisi, a multimillion dollar “Tourism Development Project” has been proposed. And according to the information from the Government of Belize’s Department of the Environment (DOE) web site, “The project site is located on Cats Caye situated within the Pelican Caye Range of South Water Caye Marine Reserve.”
According to the DOE information on the project, Cats Caye has a total land area of 42 acres.
But that is not the only project being proposed for the delicate ecological systems in the Marine Reserve of South Water Caye. Another project has been proposed which goes by the name of Chrysalis.
What is intriguing about Yum Balisi is that there is no name or reference to any land owner of the area for which the development is proposed. All that the DOE web site contains on this so-called Tourism Development Project is every detail about a planned “Eco Village” that is supposed to take up some 67,000 square feet along with a total of 3,500 feet of raised walkway.
The plan goes on to list about 100 bedrooms, complemented by some 90 bathrooms. It says that the plan is to accommodate 140 persons, two per bedroom. “In addition, the Eco-Village building will have a large water storage cistern with a capacity of up to 150,000 gallons. Rainwater will be complemented by the use of Reverse Osmosis.
Clearing of vegetation is a requirement for the laying of necessary infrastructure….The impact is irreversible but can be managed in a sustainable manner….Dredging activities will be required, but only to a minor extent as the area has already been previously filled, an activity for which Environmental Clearance and all other relevant permits were obtained.”
Amandala spoke this afternoon with Melanie McField of the World Wildlife Fund. McField told us that in the area of the proposed development, there is an abundance of marine life that will definitely be impacted in a negative manner if this development goes ahead as planned.
We tried to get an official word from the Chief Environmental Officer, Martin Alegria, but a member of his staff told us that he was not in the office. He did not return our phone calls. When we spoke to the Information Officer for the Ministry of Natural Resources, Zamira Leiva, she told us that she is not quite sure what is going on in the Marine Reserve, and therefore, cannot answer our questions until she is educated on the subject to form a proper opinion.
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