NOAA Case Study Attributes Nutrients | 09.09.07 An NOAA Case Study attributes nutrients to the destruction of Looe Key. This is important, because if as the United States is officially recognizing the role of nutrients in coral reef destruction, the issue is making the rounds in the press around the world. Even as global warming remains an easy scapegoat for coral reef destruction, the word on development nutrients is gaining ground in the press and in broader scientific circles. Costa Rican Corals dying from Hotel Fertilizers | 09.09.07 A recent Reuters article attributes hotel golf course fertilizers and bad sewage systems to the destruction of a crucial Costa Rica coastal reef. The article backs the claims of scientists who criticize Baker's Bay Club's plan. Here are some quotes from the article: "A tropical algae thriving on fertilizers from hotel golf courses and badly treated sewage is killing one of Costa Rica's most important coastal reefs, scientists say." "The green, feather-like algae is spreading along the reefs of Culebra Bay in Costa Rica's northwestern Gulf of Papagayo, a popular scuba diving spot and home to a rare species of coral. The algae blocks the sunlight and suffocates the reefs." "A tourism and construction boom along the palm tree-lined beaches is creating nitrogen- and phosphate-rich waste that feeds the algae, known as Caulerpa sertularioides, and Costa Rica is only just becoming aware of the problem." "Scientists say about 80 percent of the reef area, which stretches for about a mile and a half (2.4 km) along the coast line, is covered in the algae." The article pays tribute to the multiplying effect coral issues can have on nearshore environments: If left unchecked, the algae could also severely damage the ecosystem of the bay, allowing non-native species of fish to come in and displace the native species. Costa Rica is facing the same dilemma as the Bahamas: "The algae is the latest challenge facing Costa Rican authorities as the Central American country struggles with conserving its unique tropical biodiversity while attracting tourists and marketing itself as an ecotourism paradise." New Development to Remove Coral Reefs | 08.31.07 A new development will remove coral reefs and place them elsewhere. More insane plans in the Bahamas, according to this article from The Bahama Journal: Link The New Golf Wars | 08.28.07 Too often, tourism is a booming and busting industry, bringing immense investment dollars and relentless development pressures. In the last three decades the tourist industry has written its recipe for mega-development in mortar and stone and trim, green fairways. Throughout the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world, tourists can vacation in luxury resorts, and play golf on neatly manicured, multi-million dollar courses laid out with beach front and ocean view enough to take one’s breath away. But what else is being taken away in the process? What is clear is that the once seemingly innocuous game of golf has not taken to its new fairways in a fair way, and its greens are not really so green after all. Many of those places where all-out “golf wars” are being waged are now wracked with environmental ruin and social disruption. What exactly is it about this game of golf that seems so off course? A Hole-in-One’s History Golf’s origins in Scotland around the 10th Century seem humble enough. Over the passing millennia, golf spread slowly to new regions around the globe. In the last 50 years, this growth became exponential, with thousands of new golf courses constructed. Golf’s newest growth spurts were especially felt in the last two decades when it became a near US$25 billion industry. In 2005, Golf Digest estimated 32,000 golf courses existed (half of these in the US catering to over 26 million golfers). Golf has become popular in the Asia-Pacific region, taking hold first in Japan and expanding rapidly throughout Asia. Its rampant spread fomented opposition by both environmentalists and affected local communities against the multi-billon dollar land-grab tied to the apron strings of the greater tourism industry. Too Many Tee’d-off to Ignore In 1993 the Global Anti-Golf Movement (GAG’M) formed in Penang, Malaysia. Its mission was to halt destructive golf course development worldwide, while appealing “to golfers to be fully informed and aware of adverse environmental, health and social impacts of golf tourism.” Illicit development of golf courses on agricultural lands and ecologically sensitive areas has led to massive losses of valuable food production and complex wetland services. Conversion of mangroves to golf courses causes loss of vital functions such as nursery grounds for commercial and recreational fisheries and buffer zones against hurricanes and storm surges. Falling into the Toxic Trap with no Easy Way Out The maintenance of golf courses involves wide-scale application of a chemical cocktail to preserve the greens, poisoning both land and waterways in the paths of the effluent, affecting both targeted and non-targeted species. In addition to toxic runoff, there is massive water use and wastage. On average, 18 million gallons of water per year maintain one golf course, conferring its own negative impact on surrounding countryside, wildlife, and neighboring communities. This can cause problems for affected nearby residents dependent upon the same water resources. Worldwide, there are approximately 2,500,000 acres of lands converted to golf courses. Multi-purpose, mixed-value resource zones of high biodiversity are lost to low-value, non-native, monoculture production of restricted use - impeding ecological corridors for migratory birds and other wildlife. Our offspring may well ask us, and we must answer them truthfully, “A golf course, or a living future…please tell us, who chose the golf course?” University Class Erupts over Baker's Bay Propaganda | 08.25.07 Imagine that this classroom is a class on environmental science. Imagine that the Professor asks each of his students to pick a country somewhere in the Caribbean Basin and to write about some environmental issue the country is dealing with. Imagine that today is the day for the girl who has Bahamas to give her speech. Imagine that the girl who got Bahamas is up on the podium, the words ‘Guana Cay’ appear on the projector screen. She says that there is this island in the Northern Bahamas called Great Guana Cay. Her best friend’s dad, he works for a company called Discovery Land Company, which is building a golf resort there. She explains that before the developers arrived on the island, things were terrible. There was rampant crime, for example. The developer’s have to be alert, for fear they will be assaulted or mugged. The people who live on this island are particularly ignorant, they are like animals, she explains. The developer’s most often refuse to even sleep on the island, because of how bad the islanders are. But the developers are helping the island by bringing in a larger police force, and they will be quadrupling the size of the island by bringing in foreigners, who will replace the inbred and uneducated locals. The girl explained that the developers were a model for environmental practices, and their environmental practices should be followed throughout the Bahamas. She did not get into details, or show any photos of the work site. She explained that most people don’t realize how uneducated Bahamians are, and that if it weren’t for Discovery Land Company, Great Guana Cay would be a cesspool of crime, overridden by uneducated inbreds. Now imagine that the young woman who has Costa Rica is sitting in her seat, gripping her chair, incensed. Imagine that Costa Rica is a very bright young woman. She is aware of the controversy at Great Guana Cay. She reads Notes from the Road. She is familiar with the court case arguments and the environmental science which predicts the development will kill the island’s coral reef within a matter of years. She gets up and says that this girl, Bahamas, has bought into propaganda and the developer’s bullshit. She explains to the class that the Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club project by the Discovery Land Company is one of the most controversial projects in the Bahamas. She says that it it is opposed by conservationists and coral reef scientists around the world. She explains that the 170 people who live on Great Guana Cay are not animals at all. Nor are they inbred. In fact, they are a resilient and fiercely independent people who have populated this lonely outpost on the edge of the Atlantic for 200 years, crafting it into a peaceful and charming fishing and tourism community with 100% employment, no crime, and no police. She explains that Guana Cay holds what scientists say may be the best reef in the Bahamas. That day was April 20th, 2007. The professor of the class asked that the name of the University not be named. The professor allegedly told the student to re-do her report on the Bahamas. She was told that she should not have relied on the developer for all of her information. Costa Rica was commended in front of a very tense class. Things keep looking worse in Bimini, where the Bimini Bay Resort and Marina is literally ruining the tiny island. Here are a couple recent articles on Bimini Bay. First, a recap of the project:
Read the full story at The Nassau Guardian "Bimini's Labour Department is investigating claims of labor abuses after several expatriate former construction workers of the Bimini Bay Resort and Marina, who claim they had been working in "slave-like" conditions, publicly criticized the company following their return to Mexico. An article published in Saturday's edition of El Universal, a Spanish-language newspaper, brought attention to the plight of the seven men who managed to "escape" Bimini after three months of allegedly working in relative servitude. According to the former employees, an additional 100 workers from Queretaro, Noble, Chiapas, and Federal District remain on the island. The men were reportedly lured to Bimini with false promises only to find less-than-savory conditions when they got there. Mauricio Holy and David Alejandro claimed that they were paid less than minimum wage, worked 11 hours a day, received paltry medical attention, and were without any form of communication during their three-month employment span. The men further alleged that their documents were taken from them when they arrived in The Bahamas and they were given work permits so that they could move freely about the island; however, according to one employee who spoke to The Guardian on the condition of anonymity, the Mexican workers are not even allowed to leave the compound on weekdays. The employees claim they make about $3 a hour, which is $2 less than what most Bahamian employees make at the company. And sometimes, one worker indicated, they are not even paid on time....The men claim they were overworked and mistreated. Their work began at 7 a.m. each day and ended around 5:30 p.m. They were fed only rice with beans and were forced to sleep in a shed with up to 70 people." Read the full story at The Nassau Guardian Bimini Bay draws concerns | 08.18.07 Here are some more quotes from another recent Bimini Bay article from the Nassau Guardian: Bimini business owners say they'll "catching hell" as an all-inclusive project prepares to open for business. Most locals agree the Bimini Bay development has helped increase employment, a positive impact on the seven mile island. Biminite business owners, however, feel the project poses a threat to the future income of locals. "It's gonna dominate Southern Bimini," said Webster Duncombe. "It's of no help to Bimini in the long run." The multi-million dollar project, which sits on the northern tip of the tiny island, is designed to be all-inclusive, leaving visitors with little or no reason to venture off the grounds. Bimini establishments are clustered toward the southern end of the island. While many locals fish for a living, there many depending on profits from privately-owned businesses. Sarah Lee Pinder, employed at a local beauty salon, said tourists don't visit in town as much as they did before. "The project isn't benefitting Bimini at all," she said. "But it is benefitting Bimini Bay. You can't fight government hill. But the whole development affects each and every person." Cayman Islands Coral Reefs are Dying | 08.16.07 Shurna Robbins wrote an article for Reuters in May 2007 that eloquently explains how quickly coral is being destroyed in Caribbean countries. While the article focuses on climate change, it also discusses the anchor projects associated with cruise ships. As my readers know, the Baker's Bay Club rests on a former Disney/Premiere cruise ship anchor development. The development, which was owned by the Treasure Cay developer at the time, destroyed much of the coral cover on the Sea of Abaco side of the island, and degraded the quality of the Atlantic side reefs, because of dredging operation. To coral reef-driven tourism industries like those of the Cayman Islands, there could be a greater cost in ignoring climate change than fighting it. Ranked among the top 10 scuba diving destinations in the world, the reef system of the western Caribbean territory has lost 50 percent of its hard corals in the last 10 years in spite of strong environmental laws, scientists say. "We are at a very critical time in the history of coral reefs," said Carrie Manfrino, president of the Central Caribbean Marine Institute on Little Cayman island. "It is like working with a sick patient. How well we treat that patient will determine if that patient survives. We could potentially see the end of hard coral reefs in our lifetime." The Caymans tourism industry, which represents about 50 percent of the colony's gross domestic product, was kick-started in 1957 when dive industry pioneer Bob Soto opened the first scuba diving operation in the Caribbean. Fifty years later, about 2 million visitors arrive every year, with most either diving or snorkeling on famous sites like the North Wall or Stingray City. The sport helped transform a sleepy territory of 8,500 people subsisting on fishing and seafaring into a luxury tourism destination and sophisticated offshore banking center whose 52,000 people have the highest per capita income in the region. A UN panel -- the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change -- has warned that the world must make sweeping cuts in greenhouse gas emissions to avoid a rise in temperatures that could inundate islands and coastlines under rising seas, and kill off the world's temperature-sensitive coral reefs. In a report issued on Friday, the IPCC said keeping the increase in temperatures within 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) would only cost 0.12 percent of the world's annual gross domestic product. To Cayman residents who depend on tourism, that would be a small investment if it were enough to save the coral reefs. Global warming is heating sea water, which leads to coral bleaching, an ailment that causes normally colorful corals to turn white, and white plague, a disease sweeping and killing coral around the world. PROTECTING THE REEFS Another threat in the Caymans comes from cruise ships, which have damaged large areas of living coral with their anchors and chains, said Gina Ebanks-Petrie, director of the Cayman Islands Department of the Environment. Yet cruise ships are an important and growing part of the Caymans' tourism industry. Thirty-six percent of tourist revenue comes from 1.7 million cruise ship passengers who visit each year, and more ships are making the islands a port of call. Even with a 50 percent decline in hard corals, Caymans' reefs are still considered among the healthiest in the Atlantic. Scientists say the islands are geographically isolated by surrounding water 6,000 feet (1,830 metres) deep, which minimizes the impact of pollution from other countries. The Marine Conservation Law passed in 1986 established the marine park system and has played a key role in protecting Caymans' reefs. But Ebanks-Petrie said it has struggled to adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions. The dive industry worries that without a coral reef, the Cayman Islands will not have anything different to offer tourists than the rest of the Caribbean. "If the coral reef dies, the algae will go, and the tropical fish will go. Then there will be nothing left to see," says Nancy Easterbrook, operator of Divetech. Manfrino said hope is not lost. "We can't give up," she said. "Science is always coming up with major discoveries, so we may find a way to save our reefs." The Abaco Parrots and Endangered Species | 08.05.07 Abaco parrots are a subspecies of the rose-throated parrot (Amazona leucocephala). The species exists only in Cuba, the Cayman Islands, in Abaco's southern pine forests, and on Great Inagua. The species is threatened, and the Abaco population is very small. It is a population that needs to be protected.
During the hurricane in Spring 2005, the parrot population left the pine forests of the southern mainland and headed out to the cays of the Abaco Sound. About 20 were reported on Man-O-War Cay, presumably because hurricanes devastate the foragable fruits of the forest to such a degree, the parrots must take flight in pursuit of temporary nourishment. The cays have flora that doesn't exist on mainland Abaco, and it is possible the birds visit these islands because the fruits and their host plants are literally tougher and hardier than inland fruiting species. It is possible that the parrots have developed this survival trait over time. It is also likely that a large number of these parrots inhabit the Baker's Bay land - the largest previously undeveloped outer cay terrestrial space in the Abaco Sound. Overdeveloping Baker's Bay is not wise, and not just for the threatened Abaco Parrot. Several threatened and endangered species are at risk because of the Baker's Bay Club. None of the following is exaggeration. Not every megadevelopment happens to threaten endangered species. But if you terraform land that is a critical area ripe with endangered species, you will threaten them. Such events are extremely rare - Discovery Land Company's audacious plan would never happen in almost any circumstance anywhere in the world. The primary endangered species threatened by the Baker's Bay Club are the elkhorn and staghorn corals which form the barrier between Guana Cay's coral reef and the land slated for a golf course megadevelopment. Staghorns and Elkhorns are gravely endangered in the Caribbean. Elkhorn coral is considered one of the most important reef-builders in the region, but in the 1980's and 1990's, almost 95% of all elkhorn corals were lost throughout the Caribbean and the Florida Keys. White-band disease and human development and activity were dually to blame. Now, any healthy elkhorn reef should be viewed as criticial habitat. But Baker's Bay Club is ignoring the requests of hundreds of scientists, who are predicting the collapse of Guana's Elkhorn and Staghorn structures, due to the size and scope of the development. The primary cause of coral destruction is likely nutrient and pollutant changes in the water.
Perhaps most terrifying is the Baker's Bay Golf & Ocean Club's attitude towards the nesting and breeding sea turtles which use the Atlantic side beaches year round, and particularly in the summer months.
Although Baker's Bay Club claims to have a monitoring program for the sea turtles, there is little evidence of any real conservation. The huge increase in population, the degradation of the coral reef, the six lots being sold at Gumelemi Cay - a critical nesting location - will all severely reduce the populations of the endangered species. There are so many intertwined issues with the Baker's Bay Club - human rights issues, environmental issues, legal issues, economic issues - that it is easy to forget that the Baker's Bay dilemma is also one about saving species from uncontrolled development. Government Regrets Bimini Bay | 08.05.07 The Government of the Bahamas has apologized for approving the Bimini Bay development in Bimini. The opposition to this development is the sister-opposition of Guana Cay. The two developments are equally unaccaptable. After seeing Bimini - two tiny islands - destroyed, the Ingraham Government, which approved the development before the Christie Administration came to power in 1999, now looks back at the giant mess they have created. The apology is a step in the right direction. But here is a great article by Nicki Kelly, who opposed the Bimini development from the start, and was ridiculed by the same administration for her words:
Links Magazine Regrets Error in Island Debate | 07.15.07
Baker's Bay Club marketing material is hilarious - designed for french poodle-toting bobos - it is sappy, poorly written and obviously devised to sugarcoat. But Baker's Bay Club marketing material is also insidious; and it is written without regard to the truth, and particularly without regard to the issues and environmental concerns the development is raising in the local and scientific communities.
Updates in Photographs | 07.06.07
Baker's Bay Club Not Responding to Allegations | 07.06.07
The Bahamas National Trust controversy made front page news today in the Bahama Journal. Read an amazing interview with Sam Duncombe of ReEarth. Click here Baker's Bay Club Accused of Blatant Bribe | 07.04.07 "The Bahamas National Trust graciously received the donation. We realize they are a cash strapped organization and we respect their work, but that is no reason 'to sell your soul to the devil.' "Accepting the donation is one thing, we cannot fault them for that, but the gushing words of praise that followed in the press release from the BNT, was nothing short of appalling." The SGCRA noted some early literature produced by the developers in which they mention the BNT as being a part of the project. They were even mentioned as being a part of the environmental monitoring team in the Heads of Agreement between the developers and the government. Crabbing Grounds Are Now Gone Forever | 07.04.07
According to locals on the island of Great Guana Cay, the island's crabbing grounds have been lost to the Baker's Bay Club. For over 200 years, the people of Great Guana Cay relied on this area for subsistence.
It is ironic that in Kathleen Sullivan-Sealey's research for the Baker's Bay Club and the University of Miami, her team writes, "Conservation techniques employed to control cat populations on islands have been successful in preventing extinctions and restoring ecosystems in the past decade...In order to prevent further negative impacts on bird, reptile, and land crab populations on Great Guana Cay, control and eventual eradication of feral or stray cats is suggested." Sealey's recommendations on feral cats is laughable, especially since the crabbing grounds have been lost, not to cats but to the bulldozer that paid for her research. Eliminating feral cats from sensitive areas is of course a good practice in environmentally sensitive areas; but if the crabs the programs are trying to save are lost, what is the point? Interestingly, the U of Miami report explains that feral cats didn't really exist on the Baker's Bay property until development began. From a common sense perspective, I would agree with this. The terrain on that end of the island was hardly suitable for travel by cats. "Plan for Controlling Cat Populations on Great Guana Cay: Our goal is to eradicate feral cats on the island, and continue trapping to monitor the introduction of new cats. The use of 15 cage traps has been approved by Mr. Pinder, Director of The Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture. These traps will be loaned by Mr. David Knowles, and will be placed at various locations around the Baker’s Bay Club property. The traps will be baited with fish and catnip, and checked daily. Hand-capturing will also be attempted. Dr. Derek Bailey, a veterinarian based in Marsh Harbour, will be assisting with cat disease testing, sterilization, and euthanasia."
The Baker's Bay Club released a press release stating that its marina had been awarded the Blue Flag designation. This is one of several false statements in which Baker's Bay Club has attached itself to the authority of the Blue Flag group. But Baker's Bay Club has indeed not been awarded Blue Flag designation. The Blue Flag group does consider wider environmental implications in its assessment. The following is a press release intercepted from Discovery Land Company. This is an exquisite example of how the company is using donations to lure the Bahamas' environmental officials into accepting their ecological nightmare. Notice how they misspell environment. "Bahamas National Trust and Baker's Bay Join Forces To Preserve Evironment" Bahamians should have a record of the history of the earliest incidents surrounding the Baker's Bay controversy - these documents are critical in explaining the abuse of power and the threats to the young Republic.
|
In its July/August 2007 issue, Links Magazine printed my letter, and added that they regretted the error their writer made regarding the Baker's Bay Club. After discussing the issue with Links Magazine staff, it became apparent that the freelance writer who wrote the summary of the Baker's Bay Club 'took the bait' of the developer's marketing material. 
The Freeport News wrote a stunning article today on the recent news of the Bahamas National Trust's alleged bribe from Discovery Land Company. Below are a few quotations.
"Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club, located on the northern end of Great Guana Cay in the Abacos will comprise an exquisite residential community of 585 stunning beachfront and ocean view acres, 175 custom home sites and183 high-end single-family developer residences. The development will also include a villa-style hotel, private golf club, 18-hole Tom Fazio-designed private golf course and a 33-acre marina village with a 158-slip “Blue Flag” marina." 
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
| Great Guana Cay is a thin, six mile island in the Northern Bahamas. The inhabitants began fighting tooth and nail to save their island's coral reef and mangroves from destruction after hearing of plans for a golf megadevelopment on their tiny barrier reef island. Notes from the Road is a travelogue which covers environmental and cultural issues around North America, the Caribbean and Europe.
|
Rise Up Sweet Island - the Epic Struggle between the residents of Great Guana Cay and the Baker's Bay Club Golf Resort
Introduction Sea Turtle StationEarthwatch Coral Reef Tommy Bahama Republic Mangroves Transparency| Out Island Pathologist Masseuse Fight Back Pirates of the Crown Land Dead Silt Curtain|Discovery Land Company Crabs, Conch & Crown Land Green Future for GolfCurrent Blog | Archives 1 | Archives 2 | Archives 3 | Archives 4 | Archives 5 | Archives 6 | Archives 7 | Archives 8 | Archives 9 | Archives 10| Articles & Press | Research & Documents| Risk Report| Cervino Report| UN Speech
