And while that's the story in Corozal, back here in Belize, mangrove protection has now turned into politics. For the past week we've been reporting on the mangrove deforestation that will result from the development for the Port of Magical Belize. But there is a huge disparity in numbers. Our experts are calling it a mangrove massacre; almost 1000 acres of mangrove will be taken down within the project's footprint. But developer David Gegg says that it's only going to be 20 acres.
And more than that, as we have shown you the World Wildlife Fund has teamed up with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line to provide a destination assessment for the Port of Magical in Belize.
And that's why tonight the UDP is coming on strong against Portico and the conservationists who they say are protecting his project.
In a three page release the party says:
"WWF and any associated environmental NGO must immediately come clean with the Belizean people about any current or potential financial benefits from a project that proposes to exploit our Belizean environment in this manner. It is a sad day for conservation when an NGO such as WWF partners with a project such as Port of Magical Belize and intends to benefit financially from something that is mired with controversy."
The UDP further expressed its concerns as to whether the 2018 mangrove regulations, heavily lobbied for by The Belize Mangrove Alliance which is headed by the World Wildlife Fund, will be upheld.
The UDP has strongly voiced that "Portico will destroy more mangroves in one project than Belize destroys annually with all its housing, tourism, commercial and industrial development."
Again, the developer Gegg tells us that mangroves imprint will be minimal and that he plans to reforest the de-watering site with what he calls "proper mangroves".
