Action plan approved for protected areas, sea coast eco-system

By Miranda la Rose
Stabroek News
June 8, 2001

Cabinet approval has been given for the establishment of a national protected areas system and the preservation of fragile eco-systems along the Atlantic seacoast.

Cabinet last week approved a five-year National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP) and a National Integrated Coastal Zone Management Programme, Minister of Agriculture Navin Chandarpal has announced.

Delivering the main address at the opening of the EPA-sponsored environmental exhibition at the Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology compound at Turkeyen yesterday, Chandarpal said the approval of the NEAP means that in all aspects of governmental work the plan would be recognised and promoted.

And the national integrated coastal zone management plan, he said, seeks to establish a coordinating mechanism and a plan of action that "would allow us to treat with the many elements" as well as propel coastal residents and organisations to take more positive action.

Chandarpal noted that the Cabinet approval is a fitting tribute to the five-year old local Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which worked with a number of stakeholders to formulate both the plan and programme.

Speaking of the acheivements of the EPA since it came into being, he said that the agency has influenced a number of initiatives related to the protection of the environment with the most recent being NEAP and the coastal zone management programme.

Noting the importance of the National Integrated Coastal Zone Management Programme, he said that while great attention is being paid to the hinterland through bio-diversity programmes currently in place "right here on our coast before the eyes of 90 percent of our population there are many pressures on our eco-system."

In spite of these efforts, he cautioned that the EPA recognises that it still has a very far way to go.

The interaction of the EPA with the Iwokrama International Rainforest Project has helped both locally and internationally, Chandarpal observed.

Iwokrama, a conservation site of one million acres of pristine forest, has been set aside to examine what sustainable management of tropical rainforest can be.

Based on its success so far, Chandarpal urged the international community to give further support to "this encouraging programme" to find a balance between protecting the environment and developing the country's resources in a sustainable manner.

He expressed his appreciation to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for contributing to environmental education and public awareness and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) which has been backing the environmental management support programme.

This programme has enabled the EPA to recruit a number of professionals for top positions at the EPA and has supported the development of some of the regulations now in place, covering air and water quality, noise and hazardous waste.

The EPA, Chandarpal said, expects that organisations and entities which carry out activities that could endanger the environment would understand the regulations put in place so that a higher degree of self-monitoring could take place.

In brief remarks, EPA Executive Director Per Bertilsson said that some progress has been made in terms of building a national network for environmental protection.

He referred to the increasing cooperation between the EPA and key stakeholders, including the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, the Guyana Forestry Commission, the Ministry of Health which deals with public health and the environment, the Ministry of Agriculture which deals with harmful pesticides and weedicides and the Ministry of Local Government which tackles solid waste management.

The most exciting network which is emerging, Bertilsson said, is the environmental clubs and groups which now number about 40 in schools and communities countrywide. Most have identified activities and projects they would like to implement and their activities are centred on improving their immediate environment.

While welcoming the formation of these clubs, Bertilsson said that the EPA is ready to give all support to their endeavours and would encourage other schools and communities to get involved. Giving a youth perspective on the environment, Marian Academy student Denise West noted that many youths today "have taken an interest in the environment and many belong to environmental groups and clubs which work to keep the environment clean."

However, she said that "many more youths are left in the dark... We are surrounded by television and newspaper reports which tell us that we are fighting a losing battle to save our planet."

She asked rhetorically "do you think youths will read a magazine about global warming instead of one about extra terrestrial visitors and, do you really believe that they would watch a documentary on endangered species rather than look at music videos which they have probably seen a hundred times before?"

Noting that Georgetown particularly has a problem of littering, West said that many adults do not use public bins or keep their litter until they are near one and children tend to imitate them. In addition, she noted, men are in the habit of urinating in public places and setting a bad example to boys.

Appealing to adults to be careful about what they do, she also urged her peers "to drop their dirty habits and not drop their garbage on the streets of Georgetown and maybe it can be known as the `Garden City' once more."

Noting that Guyana is faced with environmental problems related to mining and deforestation, resulting in the loss of rare species of flora and fauna, she said that on a positive note interest groups are trying to protect Guyana's wildlife and resources by developing programmes and protected areas but they need the support of everyone.

Urging her fellow youths to become more involved in the environment, West said "we can educate elders about what we know and force them to listen to what we have to say by taking our own action when we know what they are doing to the environment is not right."

Youths, she said, can join clubs and groups to save the environment but they also need to learn about the major environmental issues and how they could help.

Even if young people could not join a youth group, she said "you can do small things that can make a big difference like not littering."

In response to West's remarks, UNDP Resident Representative Richard Olver underscored the important role young people must play in saving the environment.

He noted that many parents may not have the time to focus on environmental issues because of the need to fulfill their role as bread winners. In some cases, the economic activity they are involved in contributes to the destruction of the environment and there is need for a balance so that future generations could delight in the flora and fauna people enjoy today.