Turtle farm still polluting sea
(CNS): Despite the requirements of its licence, the Cayman Islands Turtle Farm is still polluting the ocean, its 2011 annual report has revealed. Among the many other problems facing the beleaguered West Bay facility, the auditors confirmed that the farm is essentially bankrupt and kept afloat only by injections of capital from the public purse and from loans guaranteed by government — by extension the Caymanian taxpayer. The report reveals that the farm, which is currently under pressure from international animal rights groups, earned even less revenue in 2011 than the year before, despite various efforts to stop the rot, creating a growing bill for an already financially strapped government.
According to the latest annual report, which was audited by KPMG, the farm remains at risk from potential legal action after its failure to acquire the correct environmental permits between 2007 and 2008. This has left the company exposed to possible litigation and the imposition of fines. However, when the audit was undertaken KMPG stated that so far there has been no legal action initiated against the company or any fines levied.
By July 2009 a two-year permit was eventually granted to the Turtle Farm for its effluent discharge but under the terms of the licence it was obligated to reduce this by some 50%, which the auditors say the farm has not done. Despite engaging external consultants to assist in complying with the terms of the permit and the relevant environmental laws, the farm has still failed to meet the required reduction in the waste and pollution it discharges into the ocean.
The report indicates that the farm has not been able to meet the effluent reduction goals of its permit “as a result of the cutbacks and cost constraints” on the facility. It concluded that the company needed to make a significant capital investment to install a system appropriate to meet the requirements. However, management has also decided that the system originally recommended would not necessarily meet its requirements and could have an adverse impact on air quality in the community, which it believes may be even worse than the pollution in the ocean.
In addition, during 2011 the farm hemorrhaged even more cash as profits plummeted, the report reveals. Gross profit at the farm was $3.6 million in 2011 compared with $4.6million in 2010. Although expenses at the farm decreased, there was still a significant loss of almost $8 million — a bill picked up by the local taxpayer.
In their assessment of the farm the auditors made it clear that, without the continued support from the public purse, the facility could not continue as a going concern. In total government was forced to inject $9.8 million in 2011 to keep the tourist facility open.
KPMG said that the cost overruns of the development of the facility, lower than projected visitor numbers and operating costs in excess of the initial budget had all given rise to significant business risks that cast uncertainty over the company's ability to continue.
The farm has suffered significant operational losses since the 2006 financial year ended, shortly after the controversial redevelopment of the complex was completed. As a result, the company is unable to discharge its obligations as they become due in the ordinary course of business without recourse to lending, which was only secured via a guarantee from government — essentially the wider public.
The results of the 2011 financial year, the auditors said, indicate that the company continues to generate significant losses from operations and is experiencing serious cash flow difficulties, despite efforts to address the problem, which have included increasing the price of turtle meat and considering the possibility of selling turtle shells. In 2010 the company laid off 20 workers and during the 2011 financial year it reduced the remaining staff’s salaries by as much as 15% for some people.
The farm is currently undergoing an independent review in the face of an international animal rights group's findings of inhumane treatment, overcrowding, poor water conditions and general husbandry, cannibalism, disease and injury among the turtle population, as well as other worrying charges.
The farm has denied the accusations and commissioned a report, which has now been completed, but it has not made it clear when or if the public will see the final results.
Copies of the annual report do not appear on the Cayman Turtle Farm's website. However, they are available in hard copy from the Legislative Assembly and should also be available on request at the Cayman Turtle Farm in West Bay. (If any CNS reader has a copy of the report and has the time and resources to scan the document, we'll be happy to publish.)
Vote in the CNS poll: What should government do with the Turtle Farm?
Category: Science and Nature
Et tu peter? You obviously haven't dived" Hepp's pipe line to the sewer" in a long time. Don't you remember how much fish that used to be there? There was so much blue tang fish it used to block out the sun .What about that big school of parrot fish that would come when all the food that the turtles didn't eat came out. This was from the 78-84' when they had 100,000 turtles in the farm . Now they have 10,000 what populution.
Thats like cows crapping in the field." One man's crap is another man's food" Anyone who has a dog or a cat has seen them eating their own crap. How about the iguanas crapping now thats a whole lot of crap who is eating that crap?
And don't forget global warming and the rising of the seas. these turtles will be responsible to ending the world as we know it,
Mr Adams is a very highly qualified manager for the turtle farm and is very successful . He is acheiving sucess at the CTF. He is saving money and has only been there a year . I believe he will turn the farm into a profit making company. He has saved over 3 million in a very short time of taking over.
Tourists love sorry let me say it again tourist love the turtle farm and the dolphin show. Just for a few disgruntled people who claim they have been to the farm and have learned turtle farming during their visit. Please next time you go get a tour guide who speaks english or works for the farm and they will be more then happy to explain what is in the tanks.
I was watching a you tube the other night about fishing in India. People took film showing how they butcher sharks and dophins and other variety of fish. They was eating everything . Please check other countries about the eating of turtles. Check Central America where they capture turtles on their beaches. Laws are being broken everyday there. What can anybody do about it over there? Stop eating their bananas? The price will go up .
Lets get real ……lets think for a moment ,if we get hungry and we poor is there anybody going to stop us from eating anything we want to eat ??
Leave the farm alone ITS WORKING.
The turtle farm has been releasing crap into the pristine waters around that area for decades.Lord knows what the fish are eating and then in turn are consumed by local fishermen.Its all about money re not cleaning the water BEFORE it is released into the ocean.No one really cares how polluted our waters get once the Almighty dollar is secured so that fat cats can go home with their big salariesCant wait to get this suction cup of a drain on our resources closed or preferably sold so that at least the few working there will NOT lose their jobs.Typical stupidity on the part of our Govt ministers for not taking care of this problem from way back when.I dont know how many times the DOE has tried to get this mess taken care of and the few of us outside Govt that really give a damn about our environment for after all its not about us now but the future of our next generations.Let the turtles go and keep a few back for show BUT in big tanks where they can at least enjoy swimming around. and not be subject to the misery that they areexperiencing now.
Well, you see Peter the politicians doesn't want to get rid of turtle farm because that is ready access to turtle meat for all of them turtle meat dinners around election time.
I understand the international campaign against the Cayman Turtle Farm is being spearheaded by a few British entities.
Instead of worrying about the "barbaric" and "inhumane" treatment of our turtles, shouldn't they be trying to track and close down the horsemeat slaughterhouses of the UK.
(Let me guess, those thousands of horses were treated "humanely" therefore all is well, correct?)
After all they have been providing Britain's largest food retailers (Tesco included) with the horsemeat that has been secretly added to its "beef burgers" (in some cases up to 30% content) and cleverly sold to the unwitting British public.
Inhumane? Barbaric? Grotesque abuse of trust? Criminally liable? Despicable trading practices?
* Question: (The western world generally accepts the eating of cows for nourishment.) How many of us believe that cows would NOT be immediately rendered an endangered species if humans were to cease farming those animals?
Horsemeat vs. Turtle – I'm sticking with my turtle, thanks!
Lastly, quit poking your nose into issues that do not concern you … we don't bother you guys, do we?
I consider the eating of horses as inhumane, barbaric and disgusting – (even more so the feeding of the meat to the unaware public!) However, if Brits want to eat horses, and I am assuming it is a generally accepted practice due to the lack of outrage surrounding this story, then so be it – munch away guys! What the heck do I care?!
That being said, kindly ensure that you farm said horses, otherwise they too will be added to the list of endangered species, okay?
Is any of this getting through at all … ??
** Putting British Horsemeat-gate aside for the moment – let us all remember and respect the fact that – different people from different parts of the world eat different animals.
End of story.
Understanding your rant here and in part do not necessarily disagree with your assessment but do understand that one cruelty wherever, does not justify another somewhere else. Animal protection as well as abuse has also become a global issue regardless of where that may be happening at any given time.
Eventhough most animals are very able to protect and defend themselves from a natural perspective but always lose because of the super unnatural behaviour of the human race arming themselves with a large variety of weapons as there would be no way at all to do so otherwise which makes us humans pretty much the ultimate cowards we always have been.
Becoming a vegetarian however would make all this yelling and screaming redundant. Best thing I ever did. Try it, you may be surprised.
welcome to the world of whadatis…..where two wrongs make a right……
Excuse you, my name is Whodatis, W-h-o-d-a-t-i-s.
"Whadatis" is my half step-cousin.
Get it right please, thank you.
Furthermore, try to pay attention.
I have not accused anyone of any wrongdoing – quite the contrary actually.
What a pathetic non- premise for a fresh anti UK rant. No it isn’t the UK behind trying to close down the turtle farm and the “horse meat found in burgers” story is just a minor news item about fraud from Irish suppliers. Creating arguments out of fragments again. For me, as a Brit I don’t care if you eat turtles, eat them raw if you like. I hear the flipper is considered a delicacy and any visitor to a Caymanian home would be highly honoured to be offered it. A bit like Arabs and sheeps’ eyeballs.
Whodatis has an ongoing vendetta with the UK and uses any and every issue to google an attack on the mother country. It is so predictable that it has become boring.
We were talking about the turtle farm right?
Where does it say “thousands of horses”?
What “horse slaughterhouses”?
Why would a horse be slaughtered less humanely than a cow?
How can any reasonable person conclude that Brits love to eat horses from this news story?
Why do you write such drivel? Is it only to try and get a reaction?
Why are you trying to change the subject, Whodatis?
Whodatis – Whatheon?
Everybody needs to take responsibiltiy for what goes on in their own back yard.
If our backyard is dirty labelling some of those pointing it out as hypocrites (which they may well be) doesn't make it clean!
So is our back yard dirty or not? That is the question – the only question – that should govern what we do.
What bit of that don't you get?
Yes, you might have a point.
However, the big sin at the turtle farm is the obsene waste of public money.
The root cause of the wasted money is incompetance and corruption. No one wants to deal with those two elephants in the room; they are both Caymanian with good family ties.
Of course much of my post was intended to get a reaction, folks.
Simply because the hypocrisy and bullcrap surrounding this campaign is beyond belief.
Let us not forget the labels of "inhumane", "evil", and "barbaric" that have been attributed to Caymanians for our eating of turtles by other nationals who make it a daily habit of eating fellow mammals (e.g. cows and horses).
Again I say, quit farming the cow and see how quickly they become extinct.
If CTF has issues with pollution it should be addressed, however, there are countless slaughterhouses and food processing sites in the UK, USA and EU that face these same challenges.
In fact, every few months we learn of a new outbreak of some disease, often fatal, in these countries that originate at these very sites. I do not recall any such reports from CTF or any of our sites here in Cayman and that is a point that must be highlighted at times like these.
Anyway, I learned a long time ago that engaging in battle with modern Enviornmentalists (namely the AGW freaks) and "Animaliberators" is a futile exercise.
Interestingly,I am (was) not an avid turtle eater myself, however, due to these debates I have rediscovered the nutritional qualities of turtlemeat. I understand it is one of nature's best sources of protein, and being the keen sportsman that I am, I have actually increased my consumption of turtlemeat.
So yeah … thanks for that, folks.
Wishing you all a wonderful day.
– Whodatis
Sportsman? You mean you are poaching wild turtles? – Actually, sea turtle meat is NOT healthy. They eat sponges and are full of carcinogens. – and who knows what nasty ingredients are in the "pellets" the farm feeds them.
My friend,
Regardless of what you say, a turtle freshly plucked from the ocean is FAR healthier than 90% of the CRAP that is imported here from the USA and elsewhere and sold as "food".
By the way, no … "sportsman" – as in, sports.
Kudos for electing to focus on the personal aspects of my post and completely ignoring the wider issues though.
I take it you have no valid or effective counter-argument?
Alrighty then …
"plucked from the ocean"? – or farmed? Your arguments are rambling, off-point, and too confusing and strange to be addressed rationally. The issues are environmental sustainability, animal cruelty, wasted public funds, cronyism, bad management and internatiional embarrassment. People ate turtle because they didn't have much else and our resourceful and noble ancestors found ways to cook it that were inspired and delicious, just as they did the other foods available here. I have no quarrel with Grandma's cooking!.
Later the profit motive turned our millions of sea turtles into mediocre canned soup sold as a cheap staple. Whatever cultural tradition or nutritional value eating sea turtles may still have, the Turtle Farm is not addressing the situation properly, nor are they any longer a conservation group. They have no scientists and no vets or trained experts on staff. They have a top-heavy payroll of "administrators" who have no training in animal husbandry. They have low-paid idiots whocare nothing for animals to do the "grunt" work (hence the horrendous water leak that killed a whole miserable tank full of turtles and the mysterious disappearance of all the expensive birds purchased for the aviary), They "cut expenses" by firing the few property trained people they had (who happened to be ex-pats, but still have voices to say what they've seen there.)
They barely release any turtles to the wild anymore and they cost the country 10 milliion dollars every year. How much "per pound" of meat does that work out to? – and raising the price of the meat just increases the pressure on the wild population. The expenses are FAR beyondadjustments through the meat prices or the gate either, because the place is packed with people making big salaries and doing nothing, while their "cost-cutting" measure of firing the people who actually understood the systems and the animals has resulted in the mess we have today. Clearly they must have enormous overhead and equipment expenses as well, and no ability to maintain their equipment properly. The money that has been wasted on this is appalling.
I am Caymanian and very very angry about all of this, as I've watched it unfold over the years going back to when they got rid of Jim Wood and politicized the whole operation. We should have fixed this ourselves, years ago, instead of waiting for outsiders to discover and expose it. But, even now, it's not too late IF they are willing. If it's sold, how many of the parasites with fat salaries can expect to keep their jobs when an owner is expecting profits? If it's run as an environmental NGO, then too, the dead wood must be cut out. But if they cling to the idea that government (i.e. We the people) will continue to subsidize this boondoggle, so WB polititians can give out jobs to friends and lobby for ridiculous things like moving the cruise ships to WB, then things will continue to degenerate as they have been. Apologies for the length of this rant.
Er………. You just repeated the first post.
Sorry, your approach to blogging is purely self-serving attention seeking.
The turtle farm, in its current form, is a monument to incompetance and corruption.
What a cultural eye-sore for Cayman.
It needs to be sold or shut down.
Perhaps McKeeva and his friend Suresh Prasad would care to return the $600,000. commission they paid themselves for the financing of the farm…it may help to shovel some of the effluence….
Where is the Water Authority in all this – don't they provide the permit for effluent?
Why are they allowing this to carry on happening?
because they condone it?
I am of the understanding that servicing outstanding loans is what in fact consumes most of the subsidy from Government
Let us face it, the redevelopment of the Turtle Farm / Boatswain Bay was a Pork-barrell project and we are paying for it.
Aeroplanes are still polluting the skies, but because you use them, you don't complain.
Cars are still polluting the air we breathe, but because you use them, you don't complain.
Electric companies are one of the worst polluters, especially CUC. I haven't seen anyone demonstrating outside CUC because you might not get your air-conditioning or your cold beer.
Look at the pollution in China. It was so bad last week residents were told to stay indoors.
Look at Mount Trashmore with YOUR trash piled up to the sky.
Hypocrites!
The difference is that they are chronically in violation of their environmental permit and nothing is done to intervene or penalize – either out of incompetence or outright corruption. Neither is acceptable…anymore.
compare this to cayman airways……..only its even worse….just oddly enough hidden from you the 'caymanian taxpayer'….it would appear your not smart enough to figure it out or thise that are smart enough are employed in the private sector and are happy watch cayman slowly die……………..which it is…well done…
close the money pit ! the tourist will be happy with a few turtles that can be treated humanely, they are all excited seeing chickens and iguanas on the roadside. a couple of scientist and other necessary staff and they are good .but necessary will always be the word for our governments to understand.
Lease it out! Turtling is apart of our history something we should be proud of & should protect darely! Cayman is Americanized already, our culture is melting away like butter in the sun!
Braca
Lease it out? Because someone will fall over themselves to pay to lease an operation that loses money? How exactly does leasing it solve the problem that what people are prepared to pay for a) turtle meat and b) seeing the turtle farm and splashing in the pool is less than what it costs to run?
One more hairbrained idea from the "Premier of Failures!" Just look at the financial failures he has been associated with over the years. Ican't think of anything that has been a success, except that he succedded in adding a great number of people to the "baw-baw" (social services) list.
like this is something we didnt already know and have known for years? its only open because incompetent governments keep punping huge ammounts of our money into it to preserve natural heritage? ummmmmmmmm. ok
Whoa, hold on now. This operation has funded a lot of corruption outlets here on GC for a long time. Take these brown envelopes away and you gonna get some very angry folks here. Not sure you want to stir up that hornets nest. On the other hand it would make a nice case study to see if the reef this facility has killed will bounce back after it closes and it will. The good Dr. G.H. could make it into a nice project.
What is funny about this is 80% of the “waste” going into the sea is turtle food…ie fish food!!
Everyone can twist a story. More importantly the true Caymanians will not allow this facility to close down no matter how much ” press” it gets…..we like our turtle meat.
However When compared to the chicken farms of the USA this farm is a true paradise. Those poor chickens are kept awake 24 hours per day, fed by computer, given antibiotics to keep them alive long enough to kill them in 5 weeks. Most bloggers here should go to Fosters to protest USA chickens –now they are animals who are cruelly treated….oh what was that??..you like KFC? Thought so..
As I read somewhere else today: Two wrongs don't make a right! Close the turtle farm.
Incidentally, I doubt those chicken farms are getting $!0,000,000 per year of taxpayers money!
Time for a turtle tax. If the tourist come here to experience Cayman Culture, It seems to me they would be happy to pay a small fee , say $30.00, on entry to preserve it
Cayman culture? You mean culture of making money at other peeples expenses? Works for me.
Cayman culture? Preserving the right to make more money than the locals? I’m in to that. SmileDoc.
Close it or sell it to a reputable commercial company with proper environmental credentials. This is a national disgrace and Cayman should be ashamed.
Mac should have to buy it. No one will want to close it and write off that debt and all the money we spent to make it what he wanted it to be.
I believe that this brain child of ours is indeed in need of some serious brain surgery. The main source of revenue should be tourism as local patronage is at an absolute minimum however, the tourism part is not there either as it seems.
Also, turning it in to a true conservation facility, however noble, will only cost money as well, for the large part anyway and again would not be sustainable. It has also proven simultaneously that selling the meat is another financial meltdown based on current numbers.
So, what does one do with any business that can not sustain itself no matter how you approach it? Expecting the public to keep funding it as we have done from inception post the birth of Boatswain Beach and possibly even before is no longer a realistic approach either given the current global and local financial climate.
Suggestion: It seems wise at this point to release all the turtles that are suitable now and continue over a bit of time and whatever else swims around in the park. Based not only on the finances but also the all the other problems that the CTF has been and is still facing as per this latest report. Shut is down for now so we can stop the money drain and perhaps have a healthy new approach, if any, in due course. This will stop the blame game and the local and international embarressment of maintaining a substandard facility.
For conservation purposes we can still improve on the natural nesting of turtles on our beaches which is getting beter all the time and as reported has reached a new record to date. If we wish to be so noble, which in general I believe we are, we should increase security to protect these natural nests from being disturbed and/or poached by criminals. Condo complexes are doing their part as much as they can too to ensure the safety of the turtles upon hatching with lights turned off etc. so they can make their way to the ocean.
I realize this may break the hearts of those who wish to eat turtle but let's face it, how many types of meat do you really require? Meat in all it's current varieties available, without seasoning and whatnot, it all tastes a bit the same doesn't it? Give yourself a quiz: Try various types of red or white meat without knowing what it is and not adding anything to it and discover if you can tell the difference between them. Better still,try it without cooking it, just like the real carnivors and discover the real taste of meat. You will require some sharp fangs though and a strong stomach.
On a final note, I really do hope that the CTF, at this late stage, will not be made liable for hefty fines due to their negligence in terms of waste management, lack of proper licenses etc. because if they do, guess who is going to have to pay that bit?
Steak Tartare, is my absolutely favourite dish, followed by sushi.
I believe I might present a solution to both the expense of running the farm and the issue of waste into the sea.
Anaerobic digestion.
We know that the magrove swamps produce methane from the bacteria in the muck and that these bacteria are salt tolerant.
If we cultured these bacteria and set them to work on producing methane from the farm waste, then the waste would be reduced and easier to breakdown if released and it also becomes a renewable enery source. The bacteria would be native and not introduced.
As a added benefit, the methane produced could be used to power the pumps that suck so much electricity and therefore reduce the farms expense.
This has been done on terrestial farms for decades now in europe and now in the US.
I would like to them try this and maybe develop some intellectual property which would also have a commercial value to other salt water industries.
It should have been planned with a waterpark firstly so that at least on weekends,summer and holidays the locals would keep it going. As usual lack of foresight same with the North Cruise terminal with no pick up for taxis or buses.
Close the farm, release the turtles.
Better yet…
Close the farm, eat the turtles.
Release the turtles. Plant cows!
I wanted to vote in the poll but you didn't have "Sell the farm" on the list, which was my choice. No matter what other option Government considers it will continue to be a sinkhole. Better to let a new investor try some new ideas. Government may be able to frame it as a PPP and define the framework of the agreement. Very likely Government will have to cut its loses and take a huge write off. That’s what happens when you don’t develop a sound business case, stick to a budget and earn more than you spend.
Like most Caymanian I love the Turtle Farm. I built the original hatchery in Salt Creek in 1968 and I was an director of Mariculture when it went into receivership in 1974. The farm sunk the fortunes of its original investors and everyone since. There is a successful business model that will work but it’s unlikely that a public entity has the imagination, ambition, drive and discipline to make it work.
CNS: I've added "sell it" to the options on the poll.
Thanks for signing in under your own name, Dennis. In 1968 I wouldn’t have thought you were old enough to be in charge of building a hatchery for Mariculture? Time certainly flies.
Thanks for the complement. I was 20 in 1968. We had to haul all the supplies and building material from North Sound Road to Salt Creek on a Boston Whaler. One day we drop some pipe into the sound and I was towed behind the boat for an hour before we found it. Felt more like trolling for sharks than looking for pipe.
How many other businesses are subsidized in this manner? How many turtles are there at the turtle farm? How much is each turtle costing the taxpayer? I just voted in CNS's poll and see that over 50% of the people want the farm to be operated as a turtle conservation facility. Hello, Cayman Island leaders, are you listening?
no
No. And stop calling us leaders!
They would book more birthday parties if their pricing structure for parties was in similar to what Margeritaville and other locations do. Charging a la carte prices plus entry fees for local parents picking up their kids after the party is insane.
if they did it right they could have 10 birthday parties every Saturday instead of resounding silent.
Is that news???? Like if nobody knew this before!!!!
Let’s face it: the place is an embarrassing disgrace which should be shut down. By any measure, these poor creatures live lives of utter misery.
It is time to stop the bleeding. Shut it down.
Shut down Cayman Airways while you are it…..it’s loosing twice what the turtle farm is!!
The only thing missing is a $3 million finger pier that would be used as often as tits on a bull.
That would have been another failure and another debt. The brilliance of that man from West Bay is astounding! Failure after failure.
Thanks for bringing this to the public's attention yet again but sadly this issue will continue to fester and your story will only gather minimal attention as it doesn't include an incendiary Dart or Ezzard angle to rile up the group that posts on this site every day.
If Truly4Cayman really was then they would focus their efforts on saving the sea instead of a road.
close this abomination!
..the Caymanian taxpayer???Who are they? I thought there are no direct taxes in CI.
No direct taxes, no.
Sure are a lot of indirect taxes though…paid by?……those residents and businesses based in…..Cayman…
20,000 of whom are individuals have no vote on what the tax revenue gets spent on, and a significant priprtion of the rest are businesses who dont vote either. Strangely enough, just like the Turks and Caicos. Where you have power with no electoral responsibility to those financing expenditure, you not surprisingly get money spent on things that the minority are either not, or only partially, paying for.
Almost everything you purchase in Cayman has Duty / Tax. So every person in Cayman pays taxes. When the government needs more money they increase the Duty / Tax which then effects your means of living.