Enviro groups: Elections
were not green enough
PHILIPSBURG--Environmental awareness and conservation were catch phrases during the Island Council Elections campaign but the campaign was “not green enough,” according to local environmental and heritage groups.
There must be a firm commitment by the third term Democratic Party (DP) government and Island Council members of the one opposition party, National Alliance about how to protect and safeguard the environment, environmentalists and conservationists told The Daily Herald Tuesday.
In the heat of the campaign, St. Maarten Heritage Foundation, Ocean Care, Nature Foundation and St. Maarten Pride Foundation submitted a list of steps, projects and laws they want implemented or developed to save what is left of the island’s natural and historical landscape. The groups hoped the documents would guide the campaign into greener pastures by inducing politicians to champion the cause.
When asked how green she thought the campaign had been, Heritage Foundation Director Elsje Bosch said most parties appeared to have concerns about the environment and its protection. However, the proof will be in how the environmental planning document is used during the new governing term, she stated.
“It would be nice to see people other than environmentalists concerned about these issues. There are many people in the community who have been using us as a voice, so environment and heritage matters to the community and it should to government,” she said.
Government has been taking steps to make the island greener with a concerted effort to plant trees as part of projects such as the upgrading of Front and Back Street, Bosch said. “If there were no interest, this would not have been a part of the plan. The trees are sound since they produce oxygen and make the place cooler. The surroundings are getting better.”
If government should take the same strategy to the districts and plant trees and create green spaces such as parks, if residents join the drive by planting fruit trees and other trees, the island will continue to transform into a more pleasant place to live, the veteran conservationist said.
Environment was not at the top of the agenda during the campaign, said Beverly Nisbeth of Nature Foundation. Government needs a tangible plan to address environmental issues. “I think there is willingness by government to tackle environmental concerns but they may not have the ‘know how’ and this is where our environmental groups are needed.”
Nisbeth added that green non-governmental organisations bring a fresh perspective to current issues and from their perspective a new framework can emerge to jump-start more environmental conservation and protection.
Ocean Care President Eliane Pollack said very little regarding the environment had been addressed during the campaign. She feels that politicians weren’t willing to commit to environmental issues because solutions are difficult. “They didn’t want to make commitments to anything they may not be able to live up to.”
She hopes the new executive council will sit and discuss the environmental planning document that was submitted to the Democratic Party. “They can try to come up with solutions themselves or sit with us.”
Rueben Thompson of St. Maarten Pride Foundation also agrees that the campaign was not green enough but expresses hope that that document drafted by the groups will be taken up into the new governing policy. Environment is definitely an issue that has grown in prominence in the community, he added. “There is more awareness amongst residents especially concerning the big problem of sewage, pollution, the destruction of the wetlands and beaches.”
In pre-election interviews, all six parties contesting the elections stated that the environment was of concern and would be addressed by them if they were elected to serve in the Island Council. The environmental community is now looking on to see how the DP government, which has been heavily criticised for not taking the environment seriously in the current governing term, will address the issues in the new term starting July 1.
St Maarten vacation rental
