IMA needs $$

“We have impacted every aspect of our marine environment,” Juman said.

“However we are in a position where it’s not too late. If we act now we would be able to turn things around. It’s not just Government’s job. Everybody needs to be part of the solution.” Juman made the comments while discussing with Newsday some aspects of the institute’s recently launched State of the Marine Environment (SOME) Report, indicating that its work was challenged by lack of funding.

“We know our problems. We have been trying to make people aware. The report was a call for action, a baseline where we should aspire to improve because we need to improve.” One of the areas in which this country needed to improve, she said, was the water quality at bathing beaches across the country as they were contaminated by sewage.

She said possible sources include leaking pit latrines, soakaways and septic tanks from unplanned developments (squatting areas) near the shore or on the beach, as well as malfunctioning sewer treatment plants and run-off from animal farms entering drains or river courses.

“A lot of this ends up in the water courses and eventually flows out into the ocean. We have documented problems with sewage pollution since 1981.” The IMA uses World Health Organisation and US Environmental Protection Agency Bathing Beach standards to determine if a beach is unsafe for bathing.

However, she said, if a beach is long, only certain areas could have a problem. In addition, she said some beaches, such as Maracas and Macqueripe, were “high-energy” beaches, which usually have strong waves and currents which flush sediments and therefore cleans itself more quickly.

The SOME 2016 Report highlights various sections of popular beaches along the north,west, and San Fernando coastlines that have poor water quality or are unsafe for bathing. The report can be downloaded from the IMA website.

Juman suggested that bathers refrain from swimming after heavy rainfall or during rainy season when there is increased run-off from the land. She also advised people to stay away from bathing near river mouths and areas near unplanned housing (squatting).

In order to combat the problem, Juman said proper planning permissions, ensuring developments have proper sewerage, that the Water and Sewerage Authority- maintained sewer treatment plants, and the limiting squatting communities were important.

She said,“It’s not just dealing with what comes out a sewage plant but also land-use planning.

What kind of land use we have along a river course and where the waste is going... Is it being treated before it is released into the environment?” Juman stressed that 75 percent of marine pollution in the Caribbean comes from land-based sources. “Because we are a small island state, a lot of our development is along the coast. Most of our people live and work on the coast, and most of our industries are located along the coast. we are very highly dependent on our coastal resources. Because of that we have impacted them negatively.” In addition to sewage, marine pollution also comes from waste water from industries, hydrocarbons from the oil and gas sector, nutrients, suspended solids, heavy metals and sediments from deforestation, land clearing, and quarrying.

She said the coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangroves were all negatively impacted, especially the coral reefs as the pollutants block the sun from reaching the reefs, and stress the coral. These environments then become more susceptible to climate change.

She said under this country’s jurisdiction, there was 15 times more sea space than land.

Therefore, the marine environment provided many opportunities to diversify the economy through tourism, the shipping industry, aquaculture, and many other fields. However, she said, a healthy environment was necessary to take advantage of those opportunities.