The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Environmental activists yesterday alleged that the multi-million dollar Blackbeard’s Cay project opened its doors more than four months before it applied for a ‘premises licence’ for its captive dolphin encounter.

Sam Duncombe, a ReEarth director, claimed that the documents produced to-date in relation to its Judicial Review action had merely strengthened its assertion that the Government had failed to comply with its own statutory processes in approving the Blackbeard’s Cay project.

And, in an affidavit filed with the Supreme Court yesterday, Ms Duncombe alleged that the Blackbeard’s Cay developers had yet to obtain all the required permits, while the Government was “in breach of” a Supreme Court Order on the documents it had to produce.

But Government officials are maintaining that Blackbeard’s Cay and its developer, St Maarten businessman, Samir Andrawos, possess all the required planning and marine mammal approvals to operate the project.

Craig Delancy, the Ministry of Works’s building control officer, alleged in an affidavit also filed yesterday: “In all the circumstances, Balmoral Island and /or Blue Illusions [Mr Andrawos’s company] have met all the requirements, and have in their possession, all the requisite permits from the Ministry of Public Works and Urban Development for Blackbeard’s Cay, the Welcome Centre at Balmoral, and the Water Park, restaurant and bar and gift and souvenir shop at Balmoral Island.”

Ms Duncombe, though, countered by alleging that the Government had failed to comply with court-ordered discovery, which required it to produce all approvals/permits granted to Mr Andrawos, along with every supporting document, by March 26.

An “incomplete list” was produced on March 27, 2014, and this was allegedly re-filed on April 2.

However, Ms Duncombe alleged that this was still far from satisfactory. Turning to ReEarth’s challenge to the importation of eight dolphins by Blackbeard’s Cay from Honduras, she noted that the Government had produced no evidence showing the developers had applied for a ‘premises licence’ for the captive facility prior to bringing them in.

“There is nothing in the discovery documents that shows that at the time of granting the import licence [July 19, 2013], Blue Illusions had, as required by the Marine Mammals Protection Act (MMPA), applied for and obtained a ‘license for premises to be operated as a captive marine mammal facility’,” Ms Duncombe alleged.

Pointing out that this was a different permit to the operator licence obtained by Blue Illusions, also on July 19 last year, Ms Duncombe said the two government respondents - V. Alfred Gray, minister of agriculture and marine resources, and Michael Braynen, director of marine resources - had failed to produce any evidence showing the ‘premises licence’ had been granted.

“It appears from the discovery papers that Blue Illusions applied for a ‘premises licence’ for the very first time on 6 January, 2014,” Ms Duncombe claimed.

“I note that Blue Illusions’ application on 6 January, 2014, for a premises licence was made approximately six months after the import licence under the MMPA had been issued on 19 July, 2013, as already illustrated, and approximately six months after the facility commenced operations on or about 23 July, 2013.”

She drew on the 2013 annual report for Blackbeard’s Cay’s dolphin encounter facility, which was submitted to the Department of Marine Resources on February 6, 2014.

This says: “The animals arrived in the country on July 23, 2013… We started out introducing the animals to guests on August 25, 2013.”

The report adds that between that date and November 29, 2013, some 1,744 visitors had enjoyed the dolphin encounter, with another 752 experiencing a ‘natural swim’ with the animals, and 2,512 passing through the stingray encounter.

On the planning side, documents produced by the Ministry of Works show that the developer’s plans for Blackbeard’s Cay are slightly more ambitious than they have let on.

While not quite akin to the Atlantis-style ‘Marina Village’ that many Bay Street merchants have feared, a June 11, 2012, letter from Mr Andrawos to Michael Major, director of physical planning, details a proposal for a ‘salt water pool and waterfall; office and animal care centre; three retail stores; a bar and lounge; new walkways and an extended stingray and dolphin pen.

“This redevelopment is expected to greatly enhance the existing operation on the island, and is expected to employ as many as 150 Bahamians when completed,” Mr Andrawos wrote.

Ms Duncombe, though, said the Government had yet to produce any evidence that Blue Illusions had obtained full Site Plan Approval - for Blackbeard’s Cay - as required by the Planning and Subdivisions Act.

Nor was there any Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project, or proof that a Town Meeting had been held to discuss the project, both requirements of the Planning and Subdivisions Act.

But Mr Delancy, in his affidavit, alleged that the building permit granted to Blackbeard’s Cay by the Town Planning Committee on April 9, 2013, was “equivalent to the Site Plan Approval referred to in the Planning and Subdivision Act”.

Still, Ms Duncombe alleged: “There is no evidence in the discovery documents or otherwise that Blue Illusions complied with the conditions of the Preliminary Support of Application Approval granted on 26 July, 2012, by applying separately for the extension of the stingray and dolphin pen, for the placement of groynes, for the excavation of the salt water pool and for the design of the new walkway to protect mature trees.

“Further, there is no evidence of Site Plan Approval having been granted upon the fulfilment of these conditions.”

Mr Andrawos had previously warned that ReEarth’s Judicial Review action could jeopardise “over 100 jobs” and his $8 million investment, plus send a bad message to other investors.