UK needs to protect endangered species in territories
(The Guardian): Many species in some of the most remote vestiges of Britain's overseas territories face extinction unless a government plan to protect them sets out clearly defined preservation targets, according to wildlife experts. A newly unveiled government white paper pledges to "cherish the environment" in its 14 overseas territories, which include the British Virgin Islands, the archipelago of Tristan da Cunha, the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and the Falkland Islands. However, the RSPB – which claims that 85% of the UK's threatened species, including 33 bird species are in the overseas territories – is warning that the plans feature "a notable absence of solid targets and commitments" and provide no new funding.
It claims that, unless the government takes a "once in a decade opportunity" to protect its overseas territories, there will be a potentially disastrous loss of wildlife which will have global consequences. "The UK has to look after its own back yard," said Jonathan Hall, UK overseas territories officer with the RSPB. "Many of these threatened species are unique to these islands."
Category: Science and Nature
What about our Cayman Parrots?
I hardly hear them yet alone see them anymore!!
I honestly think that they need to put a breeding program in tact just as they have for the Blue iguana's as well.
You don't know what you got till it's GONE.
The Cayman parrot is alive, well and positively thriving in North Side where I live. Each night when I get home after work I can't hear myself think for all the squarking!
The environment in general needs help…but what about our built heritage? Here is another area that Government has turned a blind eye on. In the UK they have laws that protect built heritage in private ownership. What does Cayman have??? Nothing. Not even a pending law on paper to bicker about.
The Goldfield lies in a watery grave in the North Sound, The National Trust properties need money for restoration (before they fall down) and maintenance, “Mind’s Eye” still looks a little like an eye something or another, stone walls are being knocked down everywhere for development, graveyards left to vanish into the sands of time and the old Craft Market will now have a new multi-story building. Our built heritage is vanishing. Soon the only thing that will be left of our built heritage will be the photos held by the Archive. Very sad.
I wish more could be done to beautify the old capital, Bodden Town too. It's suffered from too many years of neglect already.
Would that list include "Caymanians"?
I would suggest we put the Happy & Prosperous Caymanian on the 'Threatened' species list.
The Expat already looks to be critically endagered and in danger of going extinct. We all need to understand the link between the two species. The Caymanians depend on there being a certain number of expats in order to keep the envirnmeny healthy and flourishing. Too many could choke them out but on the flipside, too few will starve them.
A balancehas been maintained up till now and the island has prospered over the last 50 years. The two species have co-exited fairly well for the most part; certainly much better than in other islands such as Bermuda and the Bahamas. Recently there has been an invasion of a third species into the mix – the fiscally irresponsible policitician. These people have the ability to form small groups that can dangerously change the course of the entire country. They thrive in an envirnment of apathy and once they get a foothold they can be incredibly hard to get rid of.
The U.K. needs to do something about the NCL. It is pretty obvious that the Governments of this island don’t care less about the environment.
Yeah man. Perhaps finally we can have our Environmenta Law passed?
Great news!!! I hope they start here with the Conservation Law and hire some qualified personnel for the Turtle Farm…..did they hear about the 299 turtles that perished there which has somehow never been adequately explained????
The turtle farm is a rats nest of incompetence and neglect…..l
People keep making these assertions/accusations about the turle farm being run by incompetents and being a massive drain on the economy. It's everyone's right to shoot off thier mouth, but do they really want to talk foolishness.
The recent death of 299 turtles was a most unfortunate tragedy, to be sure. But it was also an accident brought about by equipment/infrastyructure failure. An accident that I am sure is being mitigated agianst for the future. In reality the turtle farm is an extremely well run world class facility that has grown through the years into a showcase facility for the world. Even through Ivan and the weeks without power afterwards, the trutle farm managed to keep the turles from harm. That's not due to incompitence
As for the drain on the economy argument, which I realize the previous poster did not present, the turle farm is just the opossite. The turle farm draws visitors to the island and generates a fairly large amount of revenue directly from admissions. It is clearly a benefit to the Caymanian tourist industry and to the economy as a whole.
What crap! It costs millions a year to keep it open.
Here's a link to the government's Annual Plan and Estimates for the year ended 30 June 2011: http://www.bmu.gov.ky/_files/file_111.pdf
On page 17 you will see that a subsidy of $9.7 Million was set aside for the Turtle Farm. So that's a cost to the public purse of $808,333 per month .
As you know, we still don't have a 2011/2012 budget but if you check item EI 49 on page 5 of MadMacs emergency budget (for July/August 2012 only): http://centos6-httpd22-php56-mysql55.installer.magneticone.com/o_belozerov/31115drupal622/sites/default/files/Government%20Motion%20No.%201%20of%202012-2013_1.pdf
…you can clearly see its now costing us $1 Million a month to run the turtle farm. This subsidy has been going on for years at a total cost from the public purse of many tens of millions. If that isn't a massive drain on this economy I don't know what is. So even if the
Turtle Farm is generating any revenue, it is running at a deficit if it is still needing a million a month from the public purse to keep running. For your information for a business to make a profit, it has to generate revenue without making a loss and/or needing such a huge subsidy to enable it to stay open.
So you're talking out your ass, just like MadMac does.
Cayman has millions of money earmarked for environmental spending but this government has refused to spend it. The UK must ensure that this hypothecated cash is not used for anything else.
The money has been spent; it was misappropriated, by our Govt, to fund anything and everything but our Environmental issues.
40 to 60 million dollars of 'missing' Environmental Protection Funds…………
There's a word for that and we all know what it is.
Enough said.
I don't think they refused to spend it. They were very happy to spend it. Just not on what the money was intended for that's all!