As we told you this week - we finally saw one of those joint letters to the Prime Minister from the conservation NGO's. But, Jules Vasquez saw something amiss - something like the name Portico which didn't appear once in a letter having to do largely with cruise tourism concerns. We've heard of missing the forest for the trees, but he surmises that they may be missing an entire mangrove forest pretty soon. Here's his story on what could be a mangrove massacre:
So the environmental groups finally spoke up...
They sent the Prime Minister one of those letters on Wednesday - yes, one of those letters with all the logos and signatures - denoting the collective might of the conservation lobby.
But, unlike those letters sent out after Waterloo and Stake Bank, this one says nothing about Portico. It speaks to cruise ports generally, saying that "all procedural progress on these projects should be put on hold until a comprehensive Cruise Port Strategy for Belize is prepared by an independent consultant for the Government of Belize to enable informed decision making on next steps in investment in the cruise industry."
But these same conservation groups already called on the Prime Minister to cancel Waterloo and Stake Bank in previous letters - naming those projects and calling them out as environmental hazards.
But, not so for Portico. No name called in this letter.
And no issue with anything specific related to this project.
Perhaps the most notable thing not mentioned is the project's effect on mangrove forests.
An independent study based on the coordinates included in the EIA and the reference map for mangroves in this area estimates that 388.7 hectares of mangoes will have to be cleared along the coastline - the route of the 6 mile coastal road, and across the projects terrestrial zone of influence, seen here in red. This includes tall, medium and dwarf mangrove ecosystems.
Of the 388.7 hectares of pristine mangrove to be destroyed, some 55 hectares comprise endangered and critically important tall mangroves.
Our expert notes that the government promised the international community that it would restore 2,000 hectares of mangroves by 2025. Portico will destroy 20% of that promise.
The question now is how did NEAC approve this project knowing it goes against Belize's national commitments to halt mangrove deforestation? These commitments were crafted in part by the World Wildlife Fund which has remained quiet on the project.
We'll keep following the story.
