Israeli N.G.O., TIME, Raises Funds to Purchase 5 Acres of Turneffe Atoll
An Israeli N.G.O. has raised funds for the purchasing of a portion of the Turneffe Atoll, within the UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is My Earth, TIME is an international organization to which anyone, at any age, can contribute anything, from a dollar onward. The N.G.O. used crowd funding to raise thirty-thousand dollars to buy five acres of the atoll. �The parcel of land, which is private property, will not remain under the control of TIME, but rather be transferred to Turneffe Atoll Trust. Executive Director, Alex Anderson, says that the Trust and TIME have been in communications for the past three years, working on a plan to prevent further destructive development projects that have been occurring on the atoll.
Alex Anderson, Executive Director, Turneffe Atoll Trust
"Turneffe Atoll Trust recently launched several key documents one of them being 'Risking the Atoll". It's been about two and three years that we have been working with TIME and we told them about the many destructive development projects that have occurred at Turneffe and that is what really bolstered their interest in trying to access in the purchase of a small portion of Turneffe. It's five acres. It is private land. It is owned by a foreign company and so they contacted us and said that they have been able to assist us guy with raising some funds and so we are going to make that donation to you. At our end, Turneffe Atoll Trust just needs to ensure that when we execute the transfer of land from the private company to the Turneffe Atoll Trust we will ensure that it remains for conservation purposes only so it can be protected from destructive and unsustainable development."
Turneffe Atoll Trust Says Parcel of Land Will Not Be Disturbed
According to Anderson, the five-acre piece of land is in a strategic position, preventing the development of the area for tourism. He says the land transaction will not include seabed or coral reefs.�
Alex Anderson, Executive Director, Turneffe Atoll Trust
"As you know a lot of studies show that for areas so pristine as Turneffe when you destroy mangroves when you compare that areas, where the mangroves have been removed to areas that have been kept natural there, is ten times more fish abundant in those areas. So that is one of the primary reasons why we are protecting it. It will not be developed. It will remain as is in a natural stated."
Reporter
"By when do you expect the land transaction to be completed?"
Alex Anderson
"We are just setting up a meeting right now with the owners of the company that owns the property so I think in the next month or two we will be able to get the clearances to go ahead and purchase."
Reporter
"And when they say thirty-thousand, is that just for the land purchase or the works that are to come?"
Alex Anderson
"Just for the land purchase."
Hipolito Novelo
"Which does not include seabed or coral?"
Alex Anderson
"No. this is five acres of land. It is not seabed. It is not coral. Let me just clarify a little bit. It is an Israeli group and you have to recognize that Turneffe is the largest and the most biological coral atoll in the western hemisphere. Their journalist got wind of this and they confused coral atoll with the land. This is five acres of private land. It does not include seabed. It does not include the coral reef. The seabed and coral reef in Belize is not for sale. That is not something that we will ever entertain for anybody."
In December 2018, the Turneffe Atoll Trust published findings which showed destructive developments at the marine reserve. Turneffe Atoll is the largest atoll in the Western Hemisphere and is part of the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System-inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.
Turneffe Atoll Trust Pledges Continued Protection of the Marine Reserve
The Turneffe Atoll is one of Belize's seven marine protected areas. Located twenty miles east of Belize City, the Turneffe Atoll is considered the largest, most biologically diverse coral atoll in the Western Hemisphere. So when news of an Israeli N.G.O. buying a piece of the atoll broke, many concerns were raised. But as Executive Director of Turneffe Atoll Trust, Alex Anderson, explained on Wednesday, This is My Earth, TIME, managed to raise funds to purchase a five-acre piece of land privately owned by another organization. After the land transaction is completed, the title will be transferred to the Trust, which has pledged to maintain the natural state of the piece of land. Anderson says that the Trust has been on the lookout to make sure that all potential developers follow all laws and not destroy the habitat of the atoll.
Alex Anderson, Executive Director, Turneffe Atoll Trust
"I think when you look at Turneffe and understand the framework how land use plays into it, we need to recognized that an area and an atoll that is considered the most biologically diverse atoll in the western hemisphere requires, I think, a lot more stringent oversight when it comes to development activities. I think from a strategic perspective we don't want to say no developments at Turneffe. But if there are ought to be developments, they need to be done responsibly. They need to go through the full EIA process. They need to ensure that all the required permits and regulatory agencies are on board. TASA has been notified. We both operate within Turneffe and as the co-managers; if they are not aware then something is drastically wrong. So yes they are aware. I cannot speak for them but from our end, Turneffe Atoll Trust, we are dedicated to ensure that when development projects pop up at Turneffe we will try our best and possible to reach out to the government agencies, to our partners in terms of the commercial fishermen, the private resorts on the Turneffe atoll, the private land owners. We will reach out to them to ensure that they know what the laws are; they know where to go and get the required permits. In terms of the permitting agencies, we will call you to see if there is any way we can assist in terms of getting boats out there to see when there are projects going on that are clearly illegal and not following the required laws."
Media takes first hand look
The Turneffe Atoll Trust has conducted a study on the environmental and economic effects of unsustainable development at the Turneffe Atoll. The study was presented in December 2018 with findings that show the breach of several environmental guidelines and regulations in the Environmental Protection Act and the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan. Today, the Turneffe Atoll Trust took a group of students and the media on a tour of the Atoll to see firsthand what the damages are. Alex Anderson, Executive Director at the Turneffe Atoll Trust said they call on developers to work within the regulations.
Alex Anderson Executive Director, Turneffe Atoll Trust: "We are an advocacy organization. We want to ensure that development projects at Turneffe follow the law, follow the EIA process. I mean we cannot nail home how important that is. There are a lot of developers that want to do things the right way you know and I think really us being an advocacy organization has a lot to do with educating private landowners and investors so that they all know what the right way of doing things is and I think a perfect example is one of the resorts that we are visiting today. They have one of the best EIA's in my opinion done in Belize and we will get the opportunity to review some of the systems they have in place to show that there are developers that want to do things the right way and are willing to follow the law so I encourage private landowners and developers that want to do something if you all don't know what the laws are, what the rules are reach out to us. We have a lot of information, we have the development guideline that summarizes every piece of environmental legislation that is in effect at Turneffe."
The developments have damaged reef flats, mangroves, corals, sea grass and water quality, risking the economic benefits derived from the area, a highly valuable resource. Valentino Shal, a consultant who worked closely on the Risking the Atoll Analysis says the value ranges in the millions of dollars.
Valentino Shal Consultant: "The Turneffe Atoll provides a lot of economic benefits to the country in general but more specifically we get a lot of benefits from fishing and tourism in this area. This area where fishers as you can see them out there today harvesting conch and lobster for export so it generates a lot of income for fishermen and they come from different parts of the country. They come mostly from the north but they come from the Belize District as well and so to these fishers this is their livelihood and it is very important for them so it brings in significant revenue in that way and also for tourism. We have several high end lodges on Turneffe Atoll that provide tourism services for guests and visitors and to operate these places they need a lot of workers. They also generate jobs for Belizeans in that way but other destinations use Turneffe Atoll like Caye Caulker and San Pedro. Because this is a very prime sport fishing area due to the reef flats in this area you get other people coming in this area to use it and so when you combine the value of the conch and lobster fishery, the sport fishing and the tourism in general which includes swimming and diving and snorkeling, the reef out there. It generates approximately over half of a billion dollars for the country."
We will have more on the trip today in tomorrow's newscast
The Many Challenges of The Turneffe Atoll
And, another marine protected area that's under pressure is the Turneffe Atoll.
In December the Turneffe Atoll Trust Brough it all into focus with a "Risking the Atoll document". Today, they took the media to the Atoll to see first hand the risks outlined in the report. Here's more from Valentino Shal:..
In all, the group went to three different locations on the atoll - and we will have the full story tomorrow.
The Impact of Development and Fishing in Turneffe
So while the Nassau Grouper is facing extinction, at the Turneffe Island, overfishing is also a huge concern. The Turneffe Atoll was declared a marine reserve seven years ago and in 2018, environmental and an economic study was carried out.� Today, we were treated to a look at the impact of development and fishing in the Turneffe. The Turneffe Atoll Trust has been at the forefront of promoting sustainable in the reserve where both the tourism and commercial fishing industries can coexist with conservation. News Five's Isani Cayetano reports.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
The largest coral atoll in Belize is fringed by the Turneffe Islands. It is one of three landmasses made up of hard marine deposits surrounding a lagoon that together form the Belize Barrier Reef.� The impressive beauty of this cluster of islands from above, on terra firma and underwater makes it a prime attraction for visitors the world over.� Its financial value for stakeholders in various sectors is incalculable.
Valentino Shal, Consultant, Turneffe Atoll Trust
"As you can see, this is a very beautiful area, a very pristine area.� It supports a lot of economic activities, fisheries, tourism, sport fishing and so it has a lot of value for Belizeans, for the Belizean economy, for the government through taxation and it's important that we maintain the integrity of the area as much as possible."
On November 22nd, 2012, the Turneffe Atoll was officially declared a marine reserve, a protected area which now has legal safeguards against fishing and development on commercial scales.
Alex Anderson, Executive Director, Turneffe Atoll Trust
"Turneffe Atoll Trust is an advocacy organization and our goal is to ensure that we advocate for best practices to be put in place when it comes to development of the Turneffe Atoll, one.� Two, we want to see a sustainable industry here at Turneffe, in terms of both the tourism and commercial fishing industries that a lot of stakeholders depend on."
For the past thirty-eight years, Dale Fairweather has been fishing in these waters.� Over time he has seen many changes that have affected this natural resource, for better or for worse.
Dale Fairweather, Fisherman
"My experience in working this area for so many years is that we use to catch a lot of lobster and conch and now it's a few.� You don't catch as much as you would like to."
Isani Cayetano
"What would you say would be perhaps the primary reason why there has been a reduction in the kind of catch that you've made?"
Dale Fairweather
"Well the primary reason is the fact that we have a, we don't have a lot of enforcement and I think that's over-fishing.� We have too much fishermen.� Right now it's over nine hundred fishermen that have license to fish in Turneffe."
It's hard to imagine the stress that is caused by over-fishing on the marine ecosystem.� To exacerbate the situation, developers of private properties on these islands constantly attempt to flout environmental laws by building outside of what is legally permitted.� Our visit to one such location at Turneffe today succeeds the launch of an environmental and an economic study in 2018.
"Risking the Atoll is an environmental and an economic analysis of several destructive development projects at Turneffe.� And so, at that session we had promised to give the media and viewers a firsthand experience of going and seeing what the magnitude of these developments look like firsthand.� So today we came out, we went by the Hakimi's Dive Haven this morning and really put into perspective the size of the development in terms of looking at what it took to have that development take place.� We also highlighted that that development was first pushed forward as a residential development.� As we can clearly see, it's been more than twelve years, the place is still under construction and it still has not opened.� I think we're looking at these projects from a view of looking back at the past to see how the damage has occurred."
That perspective is with a view to implement and enforce environmental laws in Belize.� Today, a team of tertiary level students from the University of Belize, all majoring in Natural Resources Management, saw for themselves what has been taking place within the reserve.
Giselle Mahung, Student, University of Belize
"Currently we're doing a course called Coastal Zone Management and being able to be on the ground and see the extent of developments within our country, putting the theory that we've learned in class into a more practical context, I think that this trip has provided an excellent opportunity to do that.� And what we've noticed is that Belize has an excellent framework, however, that framework, today we've been able to see that that framework is not being implemented in certain cases."