Headline News
DoE voiced port concerns
(CNS): The potential impact on the East End water lens, the loss of marine and terrestrial environmental resources and future environmental dangers and hazards are just a few of the key concerns raised by officials from the Department of Environment regarding the proposed commercial seaport in the High Rock area of East End. DoE director Gina Ebanks-Petrie confirmed that the developer, Joseph Imparato, and his team have discussed his proposed project with them and that an ad hoc environmental impact assessment group was formed in partnership with the DoE and other relevant agencies to review the terms of reference for the EIA. Ebanks-Petrie said that while the group’s comments have been submitted, in the absence of a National Conservation Law what process both the approval of the ToRs and the actual EIA will follow is not clear.
The environment boss said that staff from the DoE, the National Roads Authority, planning and the Water Authority met with Imparato’s team and the EIA consultants to offer their comments on the key issues that the assessment must consider.
“It was agreed that the draft ToRs would be reviewed and commented on by the EIA group. This has been done and we are awaiting feedback from the consultants,” Ebanks-Petrie told CNS this week. “Of course, in the absence of any legislated EIA process and procedure, such as envisaged in the draft NCL, the process for approval of the Terms of Reference and the process that the actual EIA will follow are not clear at this stage.”
She explained that the primary concerns covered five main areas. Firstly, the issues relating to the potential impact of the excavation of the proposed inland basin on the East End water lens is a concern which has been raised by a number of the local residents in the area. It is also one of the issues worrying the two local MLA’s in East End and North Side. At a number of public meetings it has been suggested that this natural fresh water source could be contaminated by the excavation.
Ebanks-Petrie also noted the general loss of significant environmental resources, both marine and terrestrial, as a result of the excavation of the access channel and construction of the breakwater/groyne, as well as the excavation of the inland basin. She added that this included both direct impacts and indirect impacts from sedimentation.
The director further noted that the possible environmental impacts associated with the proposed uses of the facility once constructed also had to be considered. “These range from potential spillage of oils to impacts associated with the construction of new roads,” she noted.
The socio-economic issues surrounding the impacts of the project on existing livelihoods are also important, Petrie-Ebanks observed, including the impact on subsistence farming, as well as the local water sports industry, among others. She said the assessment had to consider and identify the socio-economic costs, including environmental costs and how any benefits of the project would be distributed.
She said in the final analysis it would be the environmental impact assessment that would reveal the real extent of the risk this project proposes to the area’s natural resources.
The area is home to a number of the Cayman Islands’ indigenous flora and fauna as well as a number of red listed and endangered species. The country’s national tree, the Silver Thatch palm and, the national flower, the banana orchid, both endangered, are found in the area.
In general, the response from the people in the eastern districts likely to be impacted by the project has been unsupportive. Both Arden McLean and Ezzard Miller have presided over public meetings where sentiment against the development ran high. Since then, the two politicians have launched a petition against the proposed port in their districts, which will be going nationwide over the next weeks, the MLAs have confirmed as they call on the people of Cayman to proclaim their opposition to the project.
Both men have accused the developer of using the port proposal as a cover for his intended purpose, which is to quarry and sell the fill on the land he owns in the area to make what is expected to be a significant profit.
Miller said that rather than offering a proper business plan, the “often controversial investor”, having bought large tracts of essentially useless land, has now decided he can make money by quarrying the rock and shipping it overseas. The North side MLA said, having seen the plans, he estimated there was as much as half a billion dollars worth of fill to be gained, given the depth of the basin the developer proposesto dig. “He is then going to donate that hole in the ground to government to turn into a port,” Miller added. “I don’t think that is the way we should be developing our infrastructure. Moreover, Grand Cayman is not that big of a land mass that we can afford to add a piece of it to Texas.”
Imparato held a press conference to promote the development and answer questions from the media. However, CNS was not invited and therefore was unable to pose any questions to the developer regarding the myriad environmental issues concerning his proposal. Although we have contacted the agency which organised the briefing asking why we were not asked to attend, we have yet to receive a response.
Pedestrian struck by car
(CNS): A 24-year-old female pedestrian was hit by a passing car on Thursday evening at around 6pm as she walked along the Newlands East West arterial by-pass. The woman, although seriously injured, survived the incident and is currently in hospital. She is believed to have sustained a broken collar bone, a broken arm and head injuries. Police said that a Mazda Atenza apparently lost control and collided with the woman, who was walking on the side of the road. Senior accident investigators attended the scene and an investigation is underway by the Traffic Management Unit. The female driver of the car, who was also aged 24, was uninjured. The incident comes days after senior police officers had warned that accidents on Cayman’s roads were exceptionally high. (Photo Dennie Warren Jr)
On Tuesday, following the end of Operation Rotate, the police seasonal road safety campaign, Chief Inspector Angelique Howell had stated that she had real concerns about the number of collisions and smashes on Cayman’s roads after almost 300 incidents during the six weeks.
“For a country the size of the Cayman Islands 298 collisions in six weeks is a terrible figure and clearly demonstrates the lack of care and attention paid by many people on our roads," she said. "The RCIPS intends to work closely with our partner agencies to develop a national road safety strategy – as it’s clear that much more needs to be done by all agencies involved in road safety to address this issue.”
Kittiwake closed on first day
(CNS): Following the excitement of Wednesday’s events, just over one day after the Kittiwake was sent to its watery resting place off the coast of Seven Mile Beach the new dive attraction has been forced to close before it has opened to the wider public due to the Nor’wester that blew into Cayman late Thursday afternoon. Members of the Cayman Islands tourism Association said that the contractors who were expected to work on the wreck on Thursday making the site was safe for the public to dive were unable to complete that work because of the weather. As a result Cayman’s brand new dive attraction is off limits to divers until further notice. (Photo by Elly Wray of Ocean Frontiers)
“We have been advised that the contractors have not been able to complete the moorings and preparatory work to be done at the Kittiwake site,” a spokesperson for CITA said. “We will advise the public when it is open after the weather clears and work has been completed.”
The contractors were scheduled to install moorings, remove sinking equipment and ensure the wreck was free of air-pockets allowing the vessel to settle further down on the sandy seabed.
According to the Cayman Islands official weather forecast, the Nor’wester is expected to last into the early weekend but fingers are crossed that the site will be open to licensed operators from Saturday 12noon.
For more details visit www.kittiwakecayman.com
Odd smell on plane brings out emergency services
(CNS): What was described as “an unusual odor in the cabin” by the country’s national airline but described by passengers as a burning smell brought out the emergency services, on Wednesday, at Owen Roberts International Airport. As Cayman Airways flight KX113 bound for Grand Cayman from Miami, Florida was cruising home on 5 January the odor was detected in the cabin but no abnormalities were indicated in the cockpit. However, as a precautionary measure, Cayman Airways Chief Pilot, Captain Gary Hydes who was in command of the flight, elected to begin an early decent into Grand Cayman.
“On final approach into Grand Cayman, Captain Hydes informed Air Traffic Control of the odor and as a precaution, requested for emergency services to be on standby. The aircraft landed safely at Owen Roberts International Airport without incident, and a normal deplaning process was completed on arrival,” a spokesperson for Cayman airways revealed.
Maintenance inspections on the ground in Grand Cayman found that one of several ventilation fans (provided for system redundancy) had developed a defect in flight, resulting in the unusual odor. The defective ventilation fan was removed and replaced, and the aircraft was returned to service with minimal delays to the day’s scheduled operations.
“Cayman Airways would like to assure everyone that the nature of the defect, while creating an unusual odor, did not impact the safety of the flight,” said CEO Fabian Whorms.
“We at Cayman Airways hold the safety and security of our passengers as our highest priority and, as such, we commend Captain Hydes and his flight crew for their precautionary measures and the professional manner in which they addressed the situation. We would also like to thank all concerned for their understanding and apologize for any inconvenience that may have been experienced by our valued passengers,” he added.
Ritz developer cuts jobs
(CNS): Both Caymanian and ex-pat workers have been let go at Orion Development Ltd this week, officials confirmed today. Sources told CNS on Tuesday that a significant number of redundancies had been made by the developer of the Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman and the proposed Dragon Bay project, Michael Ryan, who is the owner of Orion. Although a spokesperson for Orion said that the Dragon Bay project is still going ahead, other sources told CNS that most of the people who lost their jobs this week were connected to that planned development. The developer has not revealed how many jobs and which roles were lost but admitted that Caymanians as well as foreign workers had been in the firing line. (Photo of Dragon Bay site by Dennie Warren Jr)
In an email to CNS in response to enquiries about the redundancies, Orion said that it had made a consistent effort to retain as many Caymanian members of staff as possible. “No Caymanians were let go from our main office staff and the minimum possible from field staff,” the firm owned by Ryan stated. CNS has asked Orion to clarify what that figure is and is awaiting a response.
“The job losses resulted from a review of the business and the decision to end duplicating services that the hotel can and does offer. The realignment does not affect the Dragon Bay development or our capacity to deliver to our owners, in fact we expect to see an improved and streamlined operation going forward,” the company said.
The spokesperson added that the company would be focusing on its core business of marketing and selling the real estate, managing the hotel assets and focusing on the ongoing development work on Dragon Bay. “We are transferring ancillary services to the hotel – including the boat and car operations, and oversight of the properties’ strata programmes,” she said.
The email went on to state, “The realignment does not affect the Dragon Bay development or our capacity to deliver to our owners. In fact we expect to see an improved and streamlined operation going forward.”
The spokesperson said the Dragon Bay project had always been a long term project, and has been planned that way. “We made the decision to realign and refocus our business to improve and strengthen our core capacity to move the Dragon Bay project forward,” the spokesperson stated.
Although Orion offered few official details on the number and type of jobs lost, sources told CNS that on Tuesday lunchtime most of the administration staff, as well as the construction and sales teams working on the Dragon Bay project had been let go.
In May last year CNS revealed that Ryan had given the go ahead, in accordance with the planning permission that he had been granted, to remove over 378,000 square feet of mangrove buffer zone along the North Sound shore in preparation for the work on Dragon Bay .
At the time Ken Crews from Orion Development told CNS that the goal was to replant a new 50 foot buffer of red mangroves out into the ocean. CNS has also made enquiries with the developer about the future of this replenishment project.
More recently, in September, it was revealed in the Legislative Assembly that Ryan had stopped making quarterly payments to the public purse on deferred duties which were now owed. It was revealed that the developer had asked the Cayman Islands government for an extension on the payment plan for his other development firms, Stingray and Condo Co., on some $6milllion in connection with the development of the Ritz Carlton.
Fire damages home of man charged with rape
(CNS): The West Bay property in which a man accused of raping an underage girl was believed to be living has been damaged by fire. Tyrone Roswell Ebanks appeared in court on New Year’s Eve charged with the rape of a sixteen-year-girl, who police said was grabbed from her bicycle as she rode along Powell Smith Drive in West Bay at 6pm in the evening of Monday, 27 December. Ebanks is said to have dragged the teenager into a nearby house, where he raped her. While Ebanks remained in police custody on New Year’s Day, a fire was reported at the property where he is said to have lived but police have stated that there was nothing to indicate the fire was set deliberately. (Photo Dennie Warren Jr)
Following information revealed to CNS that the New Year’s Day fire was at Ebanks’ West Bay home, CNS asked the RCIPS for details on the blaze. A police spokesperson confirmed that a property had been partly destroyed by fire in West Bay during the early hours of 1 January.
“Around 2:05am on Saturday, police and fire services attended a report of a fire at a house in the West Bay area,” the RCIPS spokesperson said. “As with any damage caused by fire reported to the Police/Fire Department a full investigation will be undertaken. At this stage of the investigation, there’s nothing to suggest or indicate ‘suspicion’ that the fire was deliberately set. The fire related to a portion of a house occupied by a person that was absent from the premises when the report was made.”
Ebanks (44), who was arrested on the same night as the attack, was charged with rape and defilement of the teenager.
Kittiwake scuttled at last!
(CNS): After morethan seven years of planning and numerous twists and turns the Kittiwake was finally scuttled yesterday in front of an excited crowd on the beach and the water. The slow, controlled sinking took more than four and a half hours but it was in the last few moments that the show really took off when the former US naval vessel began to disappear under a cascade of bubbles into the water to her final resting place. The ship which will create a new artificial reef and dive attraction will open for business tomorrow even though it still seems to be very close to the surface. Pictures taken yesterday (below) show people standing on the vessel which appears to be just a few feet below at its highest point. (Photos Dennie Warren Jr)
Officials say that the wreck will settle to around 15 feet below the water, even though it appears to 
be higher than that at present. The vessel has not sunk down to the level expected yet as a result of recent shifting sand which has raised the sea bad and the air pockets which were expected to be removed Thursday.Organisers said that within a short time the Kittiwake will drop a few feet further and then over the coming weeks and months settle down to a lower depth.
Forming a new marine park the Kittiwake is expected to attract divers and fish creating a new underwater environment off the coast of Grand Cayman’s Seven Mile Beach. The 47-foot-tall ship’s expected depth was around 62 feet down and the top deck was always meant to remain relatively close to the surface making it accessible for snorkelers as well as the divers who will be able to go further down and appreciate the full wreck.
During the sinking event crews flooded the rusted hulk of the 2,200-ton ship with some 200,000 gallons of water through holes bored in the side so that it would settle on the sandy seabed in an upright position allowing light to flow through the vessel from all angles. Although it leaned a little during sinking divers who were monitoring the scuttling said it had in fact landed on its keel as intended.
The ship, which during its naval history assisted US submarine operations around the world, arrived in Cayman on Christmas morning having been anchored among other rusty ships of the James River Reserve Fleet, aka the "Ghost Fleet," in Virginia.
Divers will be attaching mooring lines to the wreck on Thursday before the new attraction opens for the public officially on Friday. Anyone wishing to dive in the new park can contact a list of
The scuttling which was a significant event for Cayman’s tourism business was filmed by a collection of international media as well as various TV channels such as National Geographic and Discovery.
Anyone wishing to dive in the new park can contact a list of licensed operators on the website as well as view pictures and video of the sinking www.kittiwakecayman.com.
Premier travels in style
(CNS): The Cayman Island premier returned home on New Year’s Eve in style after a personal trip to the Bahamas. McKeeva Bush, along with family and friends including MLA Cline Glidden, landed at Owen Roberts on a private Gulfstream IV aircraft. According to the premier’s press secretary, the premier has no ownership of the private plane but has offered no details on who had lent the luxury aircraft to Bush and his party. (Photos by Dennie Warren Jr)
When asked by CNS whether the premier or government had any ownership in the jet, Charles Glidden said, “The premier has no financial or ownership interest in the private jet to which you refer. The premier was on a personal trip and returned on a privately owned aircraft.”
Formerly registered in Cayman, the private plane now appears on the Isle of Man aircraft registry. And according to on-line records, the plane appears to belong to Pillar Securisation SARL.
This type of high altitude high speed twin turbofan jet aircraft is at the luxury end of business travel. With a long range it can seat up to 14 passengers and fly almost 5000 nautical miles at a time.
Wheelabrator faces tall order
(CNS): The company that will now own and operate Grand Cayman’s landfill has a daunting task ahead tackling Cayman’s rubbish but the firm bills itself as being up to the job. Wheelabrator Technologies says it is a world leader in theconversion of municipal solid waste into clean energy. Having pioneered the waste-to-energy industry in the US when it designed, built and operated the first commercially successful facility in Saugus, Massachusetts, in 1975, the firm said it has converted more than 164 million tons of municipal solid waste into 86 billion kwh of energy. However, so far the firm has been shy in responding to press enquiries about how it will approach its latest and possibly most challenging dump here in Cayman.
The contract with the Cayman Islands government, announced on Christmas Eve, also requires the firm to address the condition of the existing landfill and introduce a recycling programme. The tender required that the winners of the bid to generate electricity and other "green energy" by-products in an “environmentally friendly" way, accept all types of waste, handle newly generated waste, and effectively manage and reduce all existing landfill waste at the George Town landfill site.
With the firm silent and officials from government revealing that there are still significant matters to discuss, the future of Grand Cayman’s waste management is not yet clear.
Speaking to CNS on the eve of the announcement, the chair of the technical committee, Canover Watson, said that the approval by central tendering of the technical team’s choice was merely the first step on a road to a complex solution. Negotiations with CUC, which will use the energy, as well as the financial negotiations with government are still to be completed. However, Wheelabrator was selected because of its resources and experience.
Nevertheless, there are many people in the community that still have concerns that the focus on waste-to-energy is the wrong solution. WISE, an advocacy grouped formed in 2010 to campaign for an entirely new multi-faceted approach to the country’s garbage problems, also pushed hard for the landfill to be capped and moved. However, in the tender process government made it clear that its preferred option was to keep the landfill on the current site.
Responding to government’s selection, spokesperson and project coordinator, Theresa Broderick, said the community still needed more information on what exactly has been proposed. WISE, she noted, had not speculated on who the service provider might be but had been concerned with the environmental issues, the regulatory processes and the long-term sustainability of any approach taken.
“WISE Cayman remains primarily concerned about the necessity to thoroughly assess and properly address the environmental issues of the existing dump which must involve a Site Characterization Study and its resulting remediation recommendations regardless of any waste-to-energy component,” she said. “WISE also remains sceptical on the adequacy of the existing site if, indeed, the landfill is to be responsibly remediated and, if indeed fully comprehensive facilities incorporating a combination of waste management methodologies, inclusive of recycling, are to be sanctioned to a level expected of a developed nation.”
She said that the activist group hoped that government has found a winning solution but the organisation would be following the developments in relation to the award and intended to gauge public opinion on the issue.
“Over the next couple weeks, WISE Cayman will conduct a random national public polling to ascertain the level of understanding of this issue by residents and voters alike and also the expectations of how their interests should be served,” she added.
There are concerns that the mining of the landfill could have serious environmental implications as no one knows exactly what is in the landfill, aka Mount Trashmore. What is certain, however, is that it’s full and that going forward Cayman must take a new approach to its trash by reducing the amount it generates and recycling as much of the trash as possible.
Pets poisoned in North Side
(CNS): Dog owners in the district of North Side have started the New Year mourning the loss of their much loved pets after what is believed to be a deliberate poisoning. The Gage family, who live in Old Man Bay, rushed their dogs to the vets when they woke to find them seriously ill two days after Christmas. On arrival at Island Veterinary Services it became apparent that the pets had ingested poison, which both the owners and vets believe was deliberately put out for the animals. It is also understood that another two dogs from the district may have also been killed by ingesting the same food that was deliberately laced with poisons for the pets to consume.
A spokesperson for the veterinary service said she believed the dogs may well have eaten food laced with the acutely toxic weed killer Paraquat among other poisons. Although unable to confirm until the toxicology reports are returned, she said that this dangerous substance, which can only be imported by the Department of Agriculture, was likely to be the cause of the animals’ death.
The weed killer is banned in a number of countries. It was once promoted heavily by the United States for use in Mexico to destroy marijuana plants before it was found that the herbicide was dangerous to people working with the substance.
The Gage family said they believed someone is deliberately poisoning animals in the Cayman Islands. Samantha Gage said that she awoke on 27 December to a strange quiet. She found two of her pets could not move and were writhing in pain and the other animals were struggling just to stand up.
“Why would anyone want to hurt an animal, any animal,” said Gage. “It is beyond me; if someone would deliberately kill a household pet, what would they do to a person? Whoever did this is despicable and a coward.”
The Gages said they had spoken to police who are investigating a number of poisonings on the island but have no suspects and say this crime is particularly odious.
The local Humane Society warned owners to keep a keen eye on their pets and when out walking to keep their dogs on leashes so they can see what, if anything, they might eat during their walks.
“This is not the first incident; several other animals have been reportedly poisoned and we are urging police to find those responsible” said a spokesperson.
Gage has spent several thousand dollars to keep her pets alive but yesterday she and the vet, Dr Brenda Bush, decided the most compassionate option would be to put the dogs down.
If anyone has any information that may assist police they are urged to call Officer Ramsay at 947-2220 or the Humane Society at 949-1461. (Photo below: Top left to right – Marley and Noodles, bottom left to right – Apple and Teahupoo)
