The Tribune

A group of international conservation experts has expressed serious concern over the environmental impact caused by the ongoing resort construction on Bimini.

The experts, hosted on a tour of Bimini by the Save The Bays (STB) advocacy group, said they fear the development may destroy some of the most significant coral reefs in the region and put the island’s traditional industries at risk.

“The Bahamas are some of the most beautiful and wonderful places in the world,” said Marydele O’Donnely, director of international policy for the Sea Turtle Conservancy (STC). “I’ve traveled extensively and I have been absolutely amazed by how the habitat looks here.

“But when I see developments like what is happening in North Bimini, I am not only alarmed and concerned, but really saddened. Things have happened here that shouldn’t have happened.

“You can have development but you need to do it properly, and it hasn’t been done properly.”

Archie Carr III, also an STC director, called what he saw in Bimini “quite depressing”, particularly the impact of the seafloor dredging operation undertaken to make way for a 1,000 foot pier and cruise ship terminal at the heart of Bimini’s most valuable reefs and dive sites.

Mr Carr said the operation resulted in “enormous siltation”, which Biminites say continues to blanket the surrounding sea floor and suffocate struggling marine life.

Many of the visitors were senior members of the global Waterkeeper Alliance, a leading non-governmental organisation (NGO). It coordinates more than 200 stewards of the marine environment, or Waterkeepers, who monitor and help safeguard rivers, bays, lakes and coastal areas around the world.

Rachel Silverstein, the Waterkeeper for Biscayne Bay, Florida, said: “The development that’s going on here is threatening the livelihood of Bahamians who have businesses here that support the tourism industry.”

Resorts World Bimini, owned by Malaysian conglomerate Genting, has refuted such claims, agruing its presence will boost the island’s economy.

But one Biminite said: “They are now advertising their ‘six restaurants and bars and world class casino’, as well as a variety of water sports, a beach club and restaurant and a craft market, all within their walls.

“At what point are the day guests supposed to contribute to the local economy in the six hours they spend on the island?”

Alex Matthiessen, former Hudson Bay Waterkeeper, now chief executive of the Blue Marble Project, added: “No one, even we environmentalists or the Biminites here, are against development; we’re OK with development.

“The issue is local Biminites, who have been making a healthy living off the natural resources here for many generations, are being violated when this kind of development happens.”

The environmentalists aired their concerns one week before Prime Minister Perry Christie visits Bimini to mark the official opening of the first phase of Resorts World’s new port.

The developer said in a statement: “Bimini Superfast will be hosting more than 400 travel agents, tour operators and South Florida hotel concierges from Fort Lauderdale for the day cruise to Bimini, featuring a full day of activities and time to relax on the island’s pristine beaches.

“ The experience will enable them to better encourage their clients to discover the jewel that is Bimini. Passengers will be greeted in a traditional Bahamian style with a local Junkanoo rush out, a welcome rum punch cocktail and musical entertainment by Bimini’s famed Prime Time Band.”

Resorts World added: “The passengers will then be transported throughout the island via shuttle, as is typical during a regularly scheduled weekend cruise.

“This influx of hundreds of visitors to the island on a week day will bring welcomed economic impact to Alice Town, including the craft market, conch shacks, bakeries and restaurants, giving business owners a taste of the benefits to come when Bimini SuperFast resumes service to the island throughout the week.”

While the Save the Bays’ affiliate, Bimini Blue Coalition, was forced to give up its recent legal challenge to the Resorts World project, it and others are continuing to monitor the North Bimini area that was earmarked for a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in 2000.

But, 14 years later, the North Bimini Marine Reserve is still not a reality.

During a recent visit to the island, V Alfred Gray, ministert of agriculture and fisheries, advised Biminites to learn more about the trade of turf maintenance, spurring concerns that Resorts World was going to pursue filling in north Bimini’s mangroves and turning what was to become the MPA into a golf course.

“This crucial area is a nursery for an abundance of marine species which are significant for the fishing industry not just in Bimini, but many of the surrounding islands as well,” Fred Smith QC, Save the Bays’ attorney, said. “We cannot allow that to happen.”