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Wendy Lee and Damion Crawford

Ja falls behind in eco standards

Claudia Gardner,Hospitality Jamaica Writer

A number of experts in the hospitality business are of the view that despite Jamaica's dependence on the natural environment for success in tourism, the country has fallen woefully behind in adhering to internationally acceptable environmental standards.

Damion Crawford, lecturer of hospitality and tourism in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies, has given the country a failing grade for what he says is its substandard environmental practices.

waste management remains poor

"For a tropical country whose tourism relies totally on the state of its natural environment, we are not even close to adhering to even our own national standards," Crawford said. "In many cases, environmental impact assessments are not being done where they are required, solid waste management remains poor and there continues to be widespread dumping of sewage in the sea."

He said Dunn's River Falls in St Ann is overused and needs to be regulated so it can replenish itself - just like what is done at the YS Falls in St Elizabeth. "Within the context that we use the natural environment, mainly sun, sea and sand to attract visitors here, we have failed. If we were a country that relied solely on the built environment or artificial attractions to market our product, then it would perhaps not deserve a low grade. With people interacting so closely with the environment, I cannot see how we are so lax about it."

Wendy Lee, executive director of the Northern Jamaica Conservation Association (NJCA), said the negative environmental impact due to rapid expansion of high density tourism construction on the island's coastal zones has vastly outweighed any economic benefits.

adverse effects of urbanisation

She said the urbanisation on the coastal areas is having an adverse effect on the country's coral reefs, wetlands and mangroves. The mega hotels which have mass tourism appeal were among those having the most adverse effect on the natural environment.

Concerning the development of mega resorts, she said, the authorities "are in such a rush to welcome what they see as foreign investment, at the expense of the environment. There are some companies already targeting the remaining pristine areas on the island, perhaps because the country has not yet put in place a system for the protection of parks and protected areas".

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in its latest Caribbean Environment Outlook report on the state of the Caribbean countries, including Jamaica, supported Lee's arguments.

"Because of their increasing dependence on revenues generated by the tourism industry, Caribbean governments are reluctant to impose strict regulations on tourism development and its associated land- use practices," the UNEP report said.

The UNEP also expressed concern about the effect of wide- scale tourism expansion on protected areas in the Caribbean.

"Though tourism has been one of the major sources of revenues for protected areas management, it has also become the greatest threat to protected areas in the insular Caribbean. Some sites that have been recommended for World Heritage designation have been under threat of having their sizes reduced or major tourism developments placed within their boundaries," the report said.

severe impact

From as far back as 1995, the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA) in its State of the Environment report noted that tourism could, in future, have a severe impact on the island's natural environment.

"The tourist industry makes many demands on the environment, such as pressure on beaches, the use of precious resources for craft items, use of wetlands for waste disposal, removal of seagrass beds at swimming beaches and blocking of visual and public access to the coast. These environmental impacts could reduce Jamaica 's sustained attractiveness as a tourist destination," the NRCA report said.