Agriculture minister, Dr Christopher Tufton's assurance that there will be no mining in the Cockpit Country is an announcement that is welcomed by this newspaper and one that is sure to find favour with environmentalists - at least up to a point.

The minister has promised not only to protect the area from mining but from overzealous hunters and deforestation, which signals that his Government has not reneged on commitments in its manifesto to protect the environment and ensure its sustainability.

Plans for the Cockpit Country have been a contentious topic for about a year and a half now, after the former People's National Party administration granted licences to some mining companies to comb the area for bauxite and other deposits. Environmental lobby groups, however, pressured the Government to revoke the licences and give a commitment to prevent mining in the area. The Government eventually agreed to commission a study to define the geographical boundaries of the Cockpit Country. That study was commissioned over a year ago and while it it has reportedly been completed, the findings are yet to be made public.

It is in this context that we find Dr Tufton's assurance that there will be no mining in the Cockpit Country a little wanting. His assurance would be easier to digest if the public could be assured of exactly where the Cockpit Country begins and where it ends. There is a great need to protect the area in its entirety to ensure the sustainability of its rare and endemic flora and fauna, which hold a great deal of economic and scientific value. There are species of insects and plants found in the Cockpit Country which are not found anywhere else on the island and, in fact, nowhere else in the world. It is important for Jamaicans to be absolutely clear on what the parameters of the Cockpit Country are, to avoid endangering the rich but sensitive biodiversity of the area.

We note that reserves of bauxite, one of the country's main economic stays are being depleted and it is believed that the Cockpit Country can provide a fresh source of deposits to support the industry's life and the economy.

The Jamaica Bauxite Institute's president, Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee, for example, has argued in the past that the core areas of the Cockpit Country would not be touched by miners.

The prospective areas to be mined, Lyew-Ayee has said, were valleys that would not affect limestone aquifers in the region, nor contaminate ground water supplies, as environmentalists have argued, because of the distance of these sources below the surface of the soil.

Dr Lyew-Ayee has also argued that there are ways to preserve the region's endemic species, in the event of mining by placing them in sanctuaries and returning them to their habitat once mining is complete.

These are the kind of arguments the Government will need to weigh when the boundary findings are made public. While Dr Tufton's words can give some comfort to those advocating for the Cockpit Country's preservation, absolute assurance is only meaningful when the boundaries are known.