A road will soon be built through the Ironwood Forest behind UCCI.
Most people don’t know that this area (also called the Heritage Forest) was slated to be the first National Forest in the Cayman Islands.
Service clubs were enlisted to build a boardwalk. Educators, naturalists and historians were on board to develop brochures, interpretive signs, and educational materials.
Lines were re-drawn to move the road to the edge of the forest. There were discussions about who to honour with the name. But Hurricane Ivan disrupted all this.
Now, there is a new plan in motion that would put the road directly through the most beautiful part of this national treasure. It will cut through an area that is filled with rare endemic Caymanian trees, plants and ecosystems found nowhere else on earth (not even elsewhere in the Cayman Islands). Orchids and some smaller plants may be rescued, but thousands of extremely valuable and historic native trees and foliage will be lost. The integrity of this natural resource in the heart of George Town will be gone forever.
Our schools would benefit from a National Forest in this location. It would serve as a living history lesson. Caymanian students would be able to see the land as their ancestors did.
They could learn about the old-time uses of native trees and plants in shipbuilding, home construction, medicine, food and other survival needs.
It would also be a living science laboratory for the study of botany, hydrology and other natural sciences.
The new buzzword in tourism is authenticity. People who travel want to see something real – something unique to a country. If we lose this forest and all its potential for tourism, education, authentic history, science and the showcasing of the island’s natural beauty, no amount of hindsight will bring it back.
This country has the resources to save this forest. Do we have the will?
I urge everyone to add their voice to mine and let government know that you support conserving this national treasure. If the Cabinet and the MLAs don’t hear from the voting public, they will assume that no one cares.
Lois Blumenthal
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