A team of conservation campaigners have launched a petition demanding that Cayman’s coastal lagoon ecosystems are protected from destructive development.
Amplify Cayman is inviting the public to sign the online appeal which went online on Friday, 30 June and will be presented to Cabinet as part of a wider campaign.
The petition urges the government to carry out environmental impact assessments before any major development which may damage areas such as the Central Mangrove Wetlands.
Proposed projects that the group says need to be closely examined for any harmful impact are the East-West Arterial extension and the Owen Roberts International Airport extension.
The road will run through “nationally important” wetlands, while the airport will stretch into North Sound lagoon, the petition says, negatively impacting the health of the environment.
“We rely on healthy mangroves, seagrasses and wetlands for food security, weather regulation, supporting our economy, storm protection, biodiversity and leisure,” it adds.
“These are only a few of the many benefits of these resources that form parts of our culture and support our collective quality of life when safeguarded.”
The ‘Petition to Demand Democracy over Destruction’ also has a section which asks people for their opinions on specific projects.
Petitioners can indicate if they believe a modernised public transport system, regulated private school buses and ride sharing should be prioritised over new roads.
Along with the petition, the campaign includes an open letter which constituents can share with their elected representatives.
A balance needed
Amplify Cayman’s Emily Decou said the campaign seeks to promote healthy democratic processes “as decision-making in parliament without data from constituents is poor governance”.
She asked “those who value Cayman” to sign the petition and write to their elected officials to demand that parliament ensures the protection of the territory’s coastal environments.
“Amplify Cayman is pro-sustainable development, not anti-development,” Decou said.
“We recognise that a balance needs to be struck, whereby socioeconomic needs are met within the constraints of our finite environment.”
She said that developing to improve traffic and promote luxury tourism will not result in a positive long-term impact for the nation if it results in the destruction of natural resources.
“We ask Cabinet only to approve developments that meet the nested interdependence framework, explored in Amplify Cayman’s People’s Sustainability Charter,” Decou added.
The charter was published in 2021, 20 years after the 2001 Environmental Charter, as a “holistic framework to ensure community and nature are balanced with economic growth”.
Petitioners’ demographic data will not be stored or leveraged unethically, and email addresses will not be included in the final data to Cabinet.
The petition can be found here.
“It’d be great to see over half the population respond,” Decou told the Compass, “but we’d be thrilled to get a few hundred or a few thousand signatures.”
In May, Amplify Cayman was among the green groups that expressed concerns after MPs agreed a section of the East-West Arterial extension should be built without an Environmental Impact Assessment.
The National Conservation Act 2013 says the National Conservation Council may require an environmental impact assessment if there is a threat to a protected area or critical habitat.
The Compass has reached out to the Ministry of Sustainability and Climate Resiliency for comment on the petition and is awaiting a response.
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This is a campaign and a cause which must be joined by EVERY citizen who cares about the future sustainable development of the Cayman Islands, and preserving a legacy for future generations. It may not be popular, but it is right!!