Carib Scope

分类： environment

  • Eco-Bahia Foundation showcases Cayo Levantado restoration project at international congress

    Eco-Bahia Foundation showcases Cayo Levantado restoration project at international congress

    When leading botanical and conservation experts from across the Caribbean and Central America gathered in Santo Domingo for the 2026 International Botanical Bridges Congress, hosted at the Dominican Republic’s National Botanical Garden, one standout initiative took center stage: the award-winning ecological restoration work at Cayo Levantado Resort, spearheaded by the Eco-Bahia Foundation with backing from Piñero.

    Far from a standard tourism development project, the Cayo Levantado restoration has reimagined what sustainable travel can look like in the Caribbean, blending biodiversity protection with thriving hospitality operations. The project’s leaders framed it as a replicable blueprint for balancing economic growth from tourism with long-term ecological health, drawing keen interest from attendees representing scientific institutions, environmental nonprofits, and policy bodies across the region.

    During the congress, Juan Uranga González, an environmental engineer leading the on-site restoration work, broke down the dramatic transformation that has reshaped the resort’s landscape. Rather than sticking to the water-heavy, non-native landscaping common to many Caribbean hospitality sites, the team rebuilt the area into a climate-resilient native ecosystem centered on local and endemic plant species. Official biodiversity surveys conducted at the site have documented 308 distinct plant species, 67 percent of which are native to the Dominican Republic – a remarkable shift from the resort’s original landscaping that relied heavily on water-intensive, non-native ornamental plants.

    Following presentations at the congress, participating experts traveled to Cayo Levantado for an on-site tour, allowing them to observe the restored ecosystem’s progress firsthand. Alex Matás, a key stakeholder in the initiative, emphasized that the project defies the common misconception that tourism and conservation are incompatible. Instead, Matás noted, the Cayo Levantado model proves that the travel sector can overhaul its operations to cut ecological harm, protect native biodiversity, suppress invasive species, and still deliver high-quality visitor experiences.

    The restoration project was developed in close collaboration with the Dr. Rafael María Moscoso National Botanical Garden, a partnership that highlights the power of linking academic scientific research with private sector tourism development. Organizers of the congress noted that this cross-sector collaboration makes the Cayo Levantado project particularly valuable for other regions grappling with how to advance ecosystem restoration while supporting livelihoods tied to travel.

    Key themes of this year’s International Botanical Bridges Congress ranged from large-scale ecosystem restoration and native flora conservation to urban sustainability, the expansion of global seed bank networks, and expanding public environmental education. The inclusion of the Cayo Levantado project as a featured case study underscores the growing global focus on integrating conservation into high-impact economic sectors like tourism, particularly in biodiversity-rich tropical regions.

  • PRESS RELEASE: Young Commonwealth photographers have two weeks left to win £1,000, and they only need one photograph

    PRESS RELEASE: Young Commonwealth photographers have two weeks left to win £1,000, and they only need one photograph

    As the countdown to the entry deadline ticks on, organizers of the 2026 Commonwealth Youth Photography Competition, themed ‘Waves of Change’, have issued a last call for young creators across the bloc to submit their work before submissions close at 23:59 BST on June 8, 2026 – also recognized globally as World Oceans Day.

    Open exclusively to young people between the ages of 18 and 30 who hold Commonwealth nationality or legal residency, the competition invites emerging photographers to capture visual narratives around global water systems – from vast open oceans and winding rivers to inland lakes, rugged coastlines, and community waterways – and explore how these critical resources intersect with human communities, ecological health, and the future of our planet.

    In a push to make creative participation accessible to all, entry to the competition is completely free, and no formal professional photography experience is required to participate. Entrants only need to submit one original, unpublished photograph alongside a short explanatory statement of no more than 300 words to be considered. Four distinct thematic categories are available for submission: Human-Ocean Connection, Hope and Resilience, Threats and Challenges, and Innovative Solutions. Together, these categories cover the full scope of humanity’s evolving relationship with marine and freshwater environments in 2026, spanning both the crises facing water systems and the creative action being taken to protect them.

    Prizes for standout work include a £1,000 cash award for the overall competition winner, with £250 going to each of the four category winners. The competition is a collaborative initiative led by the Royal Commonwealth Society, with partnering support from the Commonwealth Secretariat and the City of London Corporation’s Youth Natural Environment Board. Following judging, winning entries will be showcased across the vast network of Commonwealth institutions, reaching audiences across the bloc’s 56 member nations and a global audience of more than 2.7 billion people.

    Coming ahead of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, and amid growing global urgency around protecting ocean health – a top priority on the international environmental agenda – the ‘Waves of Change’ competition fills a unique role: it centers the perspectives of young people, who are on the frontlines of climate and environmental change, inviting them to share their observations, experiences and visions through the creative medium of photography.

    Interested entrants can submit their work via the competition’s official website at www.royalcwsociety.org/environment/cypc before the June 8 deadline.

  • KFC cleanup removes debris from Easy Hall gully

    KFC cleanup removes debris from Easy Hall gully

    A multi-group collaboration led by global fast-food chain KFC has successfully cleared hundreds of pounds of accumulated trash from the Easy Hall gully in St Joseph, Barbados, marking the latest step in the company’s island-wide commitment to restoring natural spaces. Volunteers from partner organizations and KFC staff spent time sorting and bagging a startling array of discarded items pulled from the waterway, ranging from full bathroom fixtures and automotive components including car seats to discarded cardboard packaging, and countless single-use glass and plastic containers that had leached toxins into the local ecosystem for months. Once collected, all debris was hauled away from the site to prepare for ongoing restoration work aimed at reviving the gully’s natural habitat and protecting the surrounding watershed. Speaking to local reporters following the clean-up, KFC Operations Business Partner Shekelia Barrow explained that this project is one piece of the brand’s larger sustainability strategy for the Caribbean nation, emphasizing that the company sees environmental stewardship as core to its role as a local corporate citizen. “KFC has embarked on cleaning natural spaces in Barbados because we understand the importance of keeping the environment safe for us and future generations,” Barrow said. She added that this was the second organized clean-up the company has led in 2024, following an initial event at Bath Beach held April 28. KFC Quality Assurance Coordinator Kianna Barrow extended thanks to key collaborators that made the gully clean-up possible, including the country’s Ministry of Environment and National Beautification, the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN), the Girl Guides Association of Barbados, and the in-house KFC staff that volunteered their time for the initiative. She noted that the project aligns seamlessly with the brand’s long-standing local sustainability campaigns: Adopt-A-Beach and Adopt-A-Kilometre. “On a number of beaches you will see KFC branded bins, benches, swings. We clean up and help keep our beaches clean. Since I have been here I said ‘Why not do it ourselves. Why sponsor when we can get our KFC teams out here doing the work. KFC is more than chicken,” she told reporters. Sydell Felicien, coordinator for CYEN’s Barbados chapter, shared that while her organization typically prioritizes beach clean-up efforts, it jumped at the chance to partner with KFC for the gully project due to the underrecognized critical role gullies play in Barbados’ broader ecosystem and biodiversity. Felicien also echoed growing concerns among local environmental groups about the rising volume of garbage and plastic waste being illegally dumped across the island’s beaches and inland waterways. She stressed that ongoing public education campaigns are essential to changing community behaviors around proper waste disposal and curbing the harmful practice of illegal dumping. The clean-up effort was documented in photos captured by Jenique Belgrave for Barbados TODAY, showing dozens of volunteers working along the gully’s banks to collect and bag litter.

  • Environment Ministry denies illegal extraction on Haina River, cites restoration project

    Environment Ministry denies illegal extraction on Haina River, cites restoration project

    In Santo Domingo, recent active construction along the Haina River in the Manoguayabo district sparked widespread rumor and resident anxiety, with many local community members claiming the activity was unregulated illegal material mining. On Wednesday, the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources issued an official statement to dispel these claims, confirming that the ongoing operations form part of a state-backed environmental recovery and sanitation initiative for the degraded river basin.

    The intervention is authorized under Resolution No. 0002-2026, which designated the full-scale restoration of the Haina River basin as an official environmental emergency. For decades, unmanaged development and pollution have left the river system in worsening condition, prompting the government to fast-track a coordinated intervention to reverse damage and protect at-risk local populations. The project focuses on high-priority zones of the basin, including Palavé and adjacent stretches along the Haina industrial corridor. Preliminary technical surveys have documented a range of critical hazards in these areas: extreme sediment accumulation that clogs water flow, accelerated riverbank erosion, severely diminished drainage capacity, and unauthorized human settlement inside designated river protection zones.

    According to ministry officials, the scope of work extends far beyond basic cleanup. Crews are conducting full riverbed restoration, implementing engineered bank stabilization measures, replanting native riparian vegetation, and removing accumulated waste and debris. All works are designed explicitly to cut flood risk for nearby residential areas and critical infrastructure, a pressing concern during the region’s annual heavy rainfall seasons. A key sustainable innovation of the stabilization work is the use of gabion structures constructed from repurposed recycled tires, turning waste material into a cost-effective, eco-friendly flood defense tool.

    The official clarification was triggered after residents of Palavé, Lechería, and other nearby Manoguayabo neighborhoods raised public alarms over the presence of heavy construction equipment along the river. In response, the ministry stressed that all operations are carried out under constant official oversight, with backing from multiple partner agencies including SENPA, the national Environmental Prosecutor’s Office, and other institutions tasked with preventing and enforcing environmental crime. Officials have called on local residents to set aside their concerns, noting that the Haina River restoration project is one of the regional government’s top priorities for both environmental recovery and community safety.

  • Days of Fire, Growing Damage; Baldy Beacon Under Threat

    Days of Fire, Growing Damage; Baldy Beacon Under Threat

    Nearly a week after an out-of-control wildfire ignited in one of Belize’s most treasured protected ecosystems, public outrage is growing over lapses in security protocols and the rapidly expanding damage to ecologically critical land. As of May 22, 2026, the blaze, which has already scorched hundreds of acres of forest at Baldy Beacon in the Mountain Pine Ridge Reserve, remains active, though officials report it has not yet crossed Roaring Creek, with cooler overnight temperatures expected to help contain the flames this evening.

    The fire, which has already left irreversible scars on the iconic Bald Hills landscape, was started accidentally by military training exercises involving explosives, a fact Belize’s Ministry of Defense has now officially acknowledged – a shift from its previous refusal to accept blame for similar blazes in the region. The conflict over responsibility has pitted former government minister and local landowner Elvin Penner against defense officials, after Penner stepped forward to sound the alarm over what he calls reckless mismanagement that allowed the fire to spread unchecked.

    Penner, a controversial figure who has returned to the public spotlight to push for accountability, told reporters that the Ministry of Defense failed to implement basic safety measures ahead of the explosive training that sparked the fire. Ministry CEO Francis Usher defended the department’s actions, stating that the training area is a designated military zone with strict security protocols to restrict civilian access and prevent unnecessary risk. Usher added that the military has deployed substantial resources to contain the blaze and avoid further destruction of private and public property, noting that while the department accepts accountability, some factors surrounding the fire’s spread were outside of its control.

    But a firsthand on-site inspection by News Five reporter Shane Williams directly contradicted the Ministry’s claims of proper safety barriers. Williams was able to drive within a few hundred yards of the detonation site without encountering any secured blockades; the only obstruction to entry was a fallen tree trunk along the road, and the only warning marker was a small, unnoticeable red rag tied to a tree. The only public notice posted at the entrance to the access road restricts entry solely to logging operations and unauthorized military vehicles, with no mention of active training or fire risk.

    Penner, who owns 10 acres of scorched land in the affected area, said that he has spent a decade cultivating pine trees on his property and intends to file a damage claim against the government. He added that during past joint military training exercises with British forces, the area was always properly barricaded, marked with clear warning signs, and patrolled by personnel to keep civilians out. When the military withdrew from the area years ago, much of the land was transferred to private owners, but the Ministry of Defense returned to resume training without updating its safety protocols to account for the new private land holdings.

    Conservation groups, including Friends for Development, which maintains a former British military base in the area for conservation work, are now leading efforts to protect the remaining intact forest. Ecologists and local residents warn that the fire carries far-reaching risks beyond the immediate reserve damage: Baldy Beacon Valley feeds directly into the Macal River, which connects to the Belize River – the main source of drinking and irrigation water for more than half of Belize’s population. Ash, sediment, and toxins from the burned vegetation could contaminate the watershed for months to come if the fire is not fully contained quickly.

    As cooler weather is forecast to aid containment efforts, the core debate over accountability for the damage and future regulation of military training in protected ecological zones remains unresolved.

  • GARD Holds Barbuda Consultations on Biodiversity and Gender Issues

    GARD Holds Barbuda Consultations on Biodiversity and Gender Issues

    In a push to build a more inclusive and sustainable national environmental strategy, stakeholders from across Barbuda gathered for a targeted consultation Tuesday, 19 May 2026, at the Barbuda Community Centre. The meeting’s core mission was to embed gender perspectives into the ongoing update of Antigua and Barbuda’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), a process backed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and led locally by the Gilbert Agricultural and Rural Development Centre (GARD Centre).

    Unlike broad national discussions, this consultation was specifically tailored to center the distinct realities of Barbuda’s population. Organizers designed the session to capture the unique on-the-ground experiences, top priorities, and unaddressed challenges that Barbuda residents face in their interactions with local ecosystems. Over the course of the meeting, participants exchanged insights across four key thematic areas: biodiversity conservation, natural resource governance, community livelihoods, and climate resilience, with a deliberate focus on how environmental change and resource management impact women and men differently.

    National consultant Mellissa Johnson led the discussion, with technical input provided by specialist Refica Attwood. Among the most pressing issues raised by attendees was saltwater intrusion into Barbuda’s freshwater aquifers, a growing climate-linked threat that participants emphasized undermines daily access to clean water, strains local livelihoods, and blocks progress toward sustainable resource management on the island.

    All input collected during the consultation will be used to identify targeted, context-specific opportunities to integrate gender considerations into the revised NBSAP framework. Because of Barbuda’s unique environmental and social landscape—distinct from the larger island of Antigua—priority actions for the island will be evaluated and incorporated separately from those developed for Antigua.

    Event organizers extended gratitude to all attendees for their contributions to advancing a more equitable, people-centered biodiversity strategy for the twin-island nation. For residents who were unable to participate in the in-person consultation, organizers noted that public input remains open, and interested contributors can reach out directly to the GARD Centre to share their perspectives.

  • Orange Walk Turns Daily Kitchen Waste into Climate Action

    Orange Walk Turns Daily Kitchen Waste into Climate Action

    As climate change accelerates and methane emerges as a critical contributor to global warming, the small town of Orange Walk is stepping up to the challenge with a ground-up sustainability initiative that starts in the most unexpected place: local residents’ kitchens. Scheduled for official launch in May 2026, the town’s first-ever Home Composting Program turns the everyday problem of household food waste into a tangible climate solution, diverting organic scraps from overflowing landfills and turning them into nutrient-rich compost. So far, 50 local households have already joined the program, receiving hands-on training and specialized tools to help them convert kitchen leftovers into a valuable soil amendment, marking a small but meaningful shift in how the community approaches waste management. The initiative is rooted in hard local data: according to Orange Walk Town Councilor Joyce Castillo, 32% of all municipal waste generated in the town is organic material that currently gets dumped at the town’s open landfill, where it decomposes without oxygen and releases methane — a greenhouse gas 80 times more heat-trapping than carbon dioxide. Without a fully operational waste transfer station to handle organic waste properly, landfill methane emissions have remained a persistent problem for the town, motivating local leaders to seek out community-focused solutions. The Home Composting Program is part of Orange Walk’s broader participation in the global Recycle Organics Program, an international initiative designed to cut global methane emissions by redirecting food and green waste from landfills to compost production. Local leaders drew insights and best practices from peer municipalities in other countries to shape the program’s design, adapting proven strategies to fit Orange Walk’s unique community needs. Complementing the residential composting push, the town also recently took delivery of a new industrial woodchipper, shared jointly with Benque Municipality through the Recycle Organics Program. This new equipment will allow the town to process yard waste and tree branches that were previously dumped in landfills, shredding the green waste into a material suitable for composting. Because Orange Walk does not yet operate a municipal composting facility, the town council has signed a formal memorandum of understanding with BSI Factory, a local facility that already runs its own composting operation. Under the agreement, BSI will accept all processed shredded yard waste from the town to integrate into its existing compost production workflow. Once the town’s new waste transfer station comes online — which local leaders hope will happen by the end of 2026 — the facility will no longer accept yard waste or organic material, making the new pre-processing and diversion systems even more critical to keeping organic material out of landfills. For Orange Walk, the initiative represents more than just a waste management upgrade: it’s a model for how small communities can take local action to address a global climate crisis, turning individual daily habits into collective impact. By engaging residents directly in waste reduction and pairing community participation with strategic municipal partnerships, the town is building a more sustainable, low-emission waste system that can serve as a blueprint for other small municipalities grappling with similar challenges.

  • Expertise France and Guadeloupe sign MoU to strengthen regional resources in combatting sargassum crisis

    Expertise France and Guadeloupe sign MoU to strengthen regional resources in combatting sargassum crisis

    The Caribbean region, long plagued by annual massive influxes of invasive sargassum seaweed that devastate coastal ecosystems, public health, tourism revenues and local livelihoods, has taken a major step forward in coordinated action: Expertise France and the Guadeloupe Regional Council have formally signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to align their existing anti-sargassum initiatives for more impactful, region-wide progress.

    The partnership brings together two of the Caribbean’s largest ongoing sargassum management projects: the SARSEA project, funded by the Agence Française de Développement and executed by Expertise France, and SARG’COOP II, a regional program headed by the Guadeloupe Region and backed by European Union INTERREG grant funding. Combined, the two initiatives represent a total pooled investment of €11 million, all dedicated to advancing sargassum monitoring, cleanup, processing and long-term management across Caribbean territories.

    Speaking after the signing, Ms. Gustave-Dit-Duflo, Vice-President of the Guadeloupe Region’s Environmental Commission, underscored that collaboration rather than siloed competition is the only path to meaningful change. “Our two programs bring nearly €11 million in collective investment to this crisis, and we have committed to this partnership to ensure these resources work in synergy, not against each other, to build robust, actionable solutions,” she explained.

    Under the terms of the agreement, the partners have outlined clear shared commitments: eliminating duplicated work through full transparency, pooling open access to research, data and project deliverables to strengthen consistent regional action, co-hosting regional and international advocacy and knowledge-sharing events, providing coordinated support to local stakeholders including private businesses, non-governmental organizations and public authorities, and embedding two critical priorities—socio-economic impact assessment and women’s inclusion—across all program activities.

    Officials note the core purpose of the MoU is to strengthen technical and institutional coordination between the two organizations, while facilitating the exchange of scientific data, technical expertise and innovative management strategies. The partnership also includes provisions for joint research into new commercial and practical uses for harvested sargassum, turning a harmful invasive species into a potential economic resource for local communities.

    The overarching mission of the aligned effort is to cut the environmental, social and economic harm sargassum inflicts on Caribbean communities, while advancing scientific understanding of the growing sargassum phenomenon and strengthening evidence-based public policy responses across the region.

    Mathilde de Williencourt, Deputy Director of the Sustainable Development Department at Expertise France, reaffirmed her organization’s long-term commitment to Caribbean nations and French overseas territories facing the sargassum crisis. “Through the SARSEA project, and in close coordination with the Guadeloupe Region under the SARG’COOP framework, Expertise France is proud to support the rollout of integrated sargassum management, help build a resilient, connected regional sargassum value chain, and advance cross-regional scientific cooperation to deepen our understanding of this crisis and inform research-backed policy,” de Williencourt said. “This partnership strengthens our commitment to the Caribbean and its overseas territories, by leveraging the deep French institutional expertise already present in the region.”

    To keep the partnership aligned, the two organizations will put in place shared governance structures, including regular coordination meetings and intentional alignment with other existing regional sargassum initiatives. Leaders behind the new agreement believe this collaborative model will pave the way for more effective, sustainable and unified action across the entire Caribbean.

    By pooling technical expertise, financial resources and on-the-ground regional knowledge, the partners aim to turn the shared challenge of sargassum into a catalyst for deeper Caribbean cooperation, innovative solutions and long-term regional resilience to future sargassum influxes.

  • BTIA Demands Stop to Sand Mining in Placencia, Ambergris Caye

    BTIA Demands Stop to Sand Mining in Placencia, Ambergris Caye

    Belize’s leading tourism industry body has reignited calls for urgent government action to curb unregulated sand extraction and dredging in two of the country’s most ecologically sensitive and economically critical coastal regions: the Placencia Lagoon and targeted coastal zones of Ambergris Caye. The campaign, which has gained growing community backing, highlights the deep interconnectedness between Belize’s natural environment and its multibillion-dollar tourism sector, warning that unregulated extraction threatens both ecosystems and livelihoods across the country.

  • OECS and EU support water protection efforts in St. Kitts through new arboretum project

    OECS and EU support water protection efforts in St. Kitts through new arboretum project

    Against a backdrop of escalating climate pressure on global natural resources, regional environmental cooperation has delivered a landmark conservation milestone in the Eastern Caribbean. On May 13, 2026, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the European Union (EU), and the government of Saint Kitts and Nevis formally inaugurated the new Royal Basseterre Valley National Park Arboretum, completing a key component of the OECS’ five-year Integrated Landscape Management (ILM) Project, a EU-funded regional conservation initiative.

    Amid accelerating climate change and environmental degradation, small island developing states like those in the Eastern Caribbean face disproportionate risks to their limited natural resources, particularly freshwater supplies. The ILM Project was developed to address these vulnerabilities by scaling up sustainable landscape and ecosystem management across the region, with the Royal Basseterre Valley Arboretum serving as one of its flagship on-the-ground outcomes.

    The newly completed arboretum occupies a section of Royal Basseterre Valley National Park, which sits atop a critical aquifer that supplies clean drinking water to nearly 40 percent of St. Kitts’ population. Funded through an EU grant, the project included installation of protective perimeter fencing to safeguard the sensitive ecosystem, as well as targeted afforestation to establish the new arboretum. Beyond protecting the region’s vital water resources, the initiative was designed to enhance the site’s value for recreation, environmental education, cultural engagement, and biodiversity conservation, through the strategic planting of both fruit-bearing and native ornamental tree species.

    The official handover ceremony drew a diverse cross-section of attendees, including government leaders, OECS and EU representatives, local students, community members, development partners, and environmental stakeholders. The gathering celebrated the project’s completion and reaffirmed collective commitments to regional sustainable development and climate-resilient conservation.

    In her remarks at the event, Joyelle Clarke, Saint Kitts and Nevis’ Senator and Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Climate Action and Constituency Empowerment, emphasized the arboretum’s central role in the federation’s national sustainability strategy, which integrates environmental protection, public health and wellness, and long-term freshwater security.

    “This arboretum is a testament to what we can achieve through partnership and our regional systems,” Clarke said. “We are able to benefit from an initiative that actively takes into consideration our local realities and caters to the unique needs of this protected space, all while strengthening our environmental resilience.”

    Derionne Edmeade, Director of Saint Kitts and Nevis’ Department of Environment, framed the project as a dual investment in ecological health and public good. “This initiative reflects the Federation’s collective commitment to biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, environmental stewardship, and sustainable development for current and future generations,” he noted.

    Delamine Andrew-Williams, speaking on behalf of the OECS Commission, hailed the project as a tangible demonstration of regional conservation vision. “The Royal Basseterre Valley National Park Arboretum stands as a practical example of this vision in action, where environmental stewardship, community benefit, and national development come together harmoniously,” she said. “The successful establishment of the arboretum, including its fencing and afforestation, is a testament to sustained collaboration and technical excellence.”

    Quentin Peignaux, representing the European Union, reaffirmed the bloc’s long-term commitment to supporting biodiversity, soil and water protection, and sustainable development across the Caribbean. “It is very important for the European Union to participate in initiatives such as the ILM Programme because water resources and soil conservation are inseparable and are both essential to protecting the natural resources that sustain our living environment,” Peignaux explained. He added that the EU continues to back a broad portfolio of conservation action in the OECS region, including biodiversity programs, protected area management, blue carbon projects, and nature-based climate solutions.

    The ceremony concluded with two symbolic acts: the unveiling of a commemorative plaque marking the arboretum’s opening, and a collective tree-planting activity aligned with Saint Kitts and Nevis’ national day tree planting initiative. Attendees including government officials, OECS delegates, students, environment ministry staff, community members, and development partners all took part, underscoring the cross-sector commitment to long-term environmental conservation and sustainable landscape management in the federation.