THE EDITOR, Sir:
I WOULD like to add my voice to those concerned individuals and organisations re the proposed development at Lime Cay. Lime Cay is in need of proper management and one such method of control is the imposition a system of 'user fees'. Others have commented on the pros and cons of this, as well as other environmental management issues.
My letter has more to do with the issue of prescriptive rights. The University of the West Indies for example has been conducting research and undergraduate teaching on Lime Cay and the other associated Port Royal Cays for over forty years. Lime Cay is still used by the Department of Life Sciences as one of their field sites for different advanced biology courses. The Cay and its associated marine habitats have been the subject of many research papers published by the university. Will this access now be curtailed/prevented?
Another group of users who stand to be affected is the local recreational SCUBA diving community. Two such groups are the University Sub-Aqua Club (USAC)and the Jamaica Sub-Aqua Club (JSAC) which are by their nature not-for-profit clubs who engage in recreational diving around the island. The Cay has been used as a base for diver training, skill development as well as exploratory diving.
The people of Port Royal also will surely be affected. The members of the local fishing community, fisherfolk and their families have also had a long period of access to Lime Cay. Will money now be the determining factor for access to Lime Cay by the "local" community.
This issue of Prescriptive Rights will continue to re-surface in other locations as the development of our coastal zone continues. I know that the government and NEPA are in the process of finalising a National Oceans and Coastal Zone Policy document. The issue of prescriptive rights in my opinion has not been sufficiently dealt with in this document and needs to be updated.
Locations such as Lime Cay are accessed by boat, however it has become increasingly difficult to access other areas of Jamaica's coastline from the land (by walking) as walls and fences prevent access to areas previously open to the scientific and SCUBA diving community. In other Caribbean territories the access to the coast by the public is a right not a privilege.
An integrated management plan for the use of Lime Cay needs to be properly formulated and discussed thoroughly with all the stakeholders.
I am etc.,
PETER E.T. EDWARDS
peter.edwards@uwimona.edu.jm,
Chairman, University Sub Aqua Club,
Centre for Marine Sciences
U.W.I., Mona
Via Go-Jamaica
