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And while that is the overall message of the Waterloo group - that their project has been treated unfairly at every turn, they spent a large part of the 90 minute press conference comparing the two projects.
Luis Prieto Y Munoz, Piedroba Consulting Group
"Port of Magical Belize is a greenfield project, whereas the Port of Belize is a brownfield project to provide a little bit of context. Greenfield means that the project is sited within an environmental area that has been previously undeveloped. It is, for the sake of it, virginal mangrove forests and a pretty much pristine coastal environment. Conversely, the Port of Release project was cited entire within the envelope of an existing port facility brownfield project from an environmental cost stand point it's pretty straightforward. The one that is built within a previously disturbed land, which has little to no environmental value, is less impactful than one that is built within an environment that is currently full of wildlife, vegetation and pristine habitat for the terrestrial footprint already touched on this, but ultimately the Port of Magic believes is sited entirely within a virginal little mangrove forest, as well as a pristine coastal area."
"Whereas the port of Belize were sited entirely within the existing port project envelope The Port of Belize waters have been influenced by the port for many, many years. So the biological value there is very limited. There's a lot of coastal flushing, there's very little seagrass, there are virtually no corals of significance within that footprint. Conversely, the Port of Magic Belize project, because this channel is being dug entirely within a previously untouched coastal zone, comes very close to existing calls. It comes very close to pristine seagrass meadows that support significant amounts of coastal habitat, including manatee feeding grounds and manatee transit areas. So a significant difference between the two."
"Beyond that, the Port Project also was going to connect the Jane Usher Boulevard to the Western Highway, which would have significantly decongesting the South Side. And it would have also allowed for the movement of cargo from the port directly to the highway, rather than currently going through the urban environment, as well as providing a significant amount of modern infrastructure within the South Side, including drainage and water conveyance that would have improved significantly, enhanced its flood resilience."
"So that is a very stark difference, some argue, whereas one project is an isolated, almost private destination significantly South of the city, the other one being built in affordability is being built within the urban environment, brought significant tangential benefit as well as the enormous commercial benefits of a modern bulk and cargo facility."
"From a cost standpoint, the Port of Magical Belize as I mentioned, is of a larger scale. It's more dredging, it's a longer channel, it's a larger peninsula. So their projected costs are significantly higher. There's a lot of expense associated with that beyond it. It also incorporates the construction of a long highway connection, which is not cheap. A bridge over the river also very expensive. So the total dollar value is substantially higher than the port of Belize's because ultimately the port of believes could have piggyback on existing infrastructure, which as I mentioned previously they would have been enhancing. At the same time."
Tomorrow we'll have more from that press conference, including addressing the elephant in the room, as we ask the effect that the involvement of the Ashcroft Alliance has had on getting that project rejected twice.
