Green paper tabled in advance of national discussion to finalise policy document

Durrant Pate/Contributor

The management of Jamaica’s cays, rocks, islands and associated ecosystems, commonly referred to as CRIAEs, is coming in for national attention, with work far advanced on developing a National Cays Management Policy.

This is as a result of concerns relating to the habitation of some cays, particularly the Pedro Cays, where most of our seafood for both local and overseas consumption are exploited. The archipelagic state of Jamaica consists of 74 CRIAEs, which are critical to the island’s definition as an archipelagic state and their ecological integrity and diversity mandate that they be effectively managed for present and future generations.

CRIAEs include a variety of habitats such as coral reefs, mangroves, wetlands and seagrass meadows, which support various species of flora and fauna. Residents of Jamaica, from the Tainos to the present, have used CRIAEs primarily for recreation and as a source of food and temporary shelter.

Inadequate guardrails and non-existent oversight

The management of Jamaica’s CRIAEs for sustainability is both a political and economic imperative, and as such, this proposed policy articulates a roadmap in that regard. Having cited the lack of a centralised institutional framework supported by robust legislation governing activities in Jamaica, CRIAEs create significant challenges for their sustainable management. The authorities are acknowledging that activities on them have generally gone unchecked.

This has resulted in unsustainable practices such as over-exploitation and the destruction of ecosystems. Similarly, stakeholders such as various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with overlapping and complementary jurisdictions pose a challenge to the management of CRIAEs and therefore, an inter-ministerial coordinating body is required.

CRIAEs are habitats for numerous species of flora and fauna and are important for tourism, fishing and recreation, but most of them lack suitable infrastructure for use as recreational sites. However, fisherfolk seasonally or permanently inhabit a few, for example, Pedro Cays and Morant Cays. 

Despite their significant ecological, economic and geopolitical importance to Jamaica, there is no comprehensive legal or policy framework in place for these CRIAEs effective management. 

Recommended policy actions

The 71-page Green Paper, which was tabled in parliament on Tuesday recommends that Jamaica’s CRIAEs be classified into four distinct categories according to their main recommended use(s) and outlines the proposed management strategies for each category:

• CRIAEs for Preservation are to be left undisturbed to protect their ecological attributes. 
• CRIAEs for Conservation are to be managed for sustainable use of their ecological goods and services. 
• CRIAEs for Recreation are to be managed for recreational use, and 
• CRIAEs for authorised Commercial Activities are already being used for authorised commercial activities related to the fisheries sector and will be maintained for such purposes. 

Specific issues and challenges that the policy seeks to address include unsustainable fishing practices, threats to wildlife (flora and fauna), degradation of critical marine habitats, unchecked population growth (in terms of temporary settlement and unauthorised commercial activities on select cays), introduction of alien and invasive species, sewage and garbage pollution, impact of climate change and threats from developments (e.g. the possibility of exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbon deposits). 

The proposed policy document outlines the relevant institutional and legislative frameworks for the governance of the CRIAEs to enable their sustainable management. Given the challenges noted, the Cays Management Policy is being developed to ensure the health and resilience of the CRIAEs and that they are sustainably managed, resilient to climate change and contribute to the ecological, economic and socio-cultural development of the country and its people. 

This vision will be achieved through the implementation of strategic policy actions aimed at realising the following Policy Goals: 

1. Establish comprehensive institutional and legislative frameworks for the sustainable management of CRIAEs,
2. Conserve and protect the ecological integrity of CRIAEs,
3. Establish and operationalise sustainable and equitable financing mechanisms to aid in the management of CRIAEs,
4. Protect the marine resources and cultural heritage of CRIAEs in recognition of their value to the cultural and economic development of Jamaica, and 
5. Increase the resilience of CRIAEs to climate change impacts and natural hazards. 

The strategic policy actions outlined within this Policy will be implemented over a 5-year period. The Policy Implementation Plan outlines the most critical actions, including the promulgation of legislation and the establishment of a Cays Management Unit (CMU) within the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA, with the mandate to manage the day-to-day activities related to the management of Jamaica’s CRIAEs. 

The CMU will, inter alia, identify and zone CRIAEs according to the established classification scheme and detail permitted activities on CRIAEs.

The Implementation Plan also specifies the timeframe for implementation of priority actions, as well as the responsible stakeholders. NEPA will be responsible for the overall policy implementation and will report to the Ministry with responsibility for the Environment on the same.

Periodic reports on the Policy Implementation will be submitted to the Cabinet through the said Ministry. The Green Paper drew on the work of the Peter Espeut led Cays Management Committee (CMC), which was created in February 2008 as a subcommittee of the National Council on Ocean and Coastal Zone Management to create the with the primary objective of preparing a comprehensive draft Cays Management Policy, including the administrative and legislative frameworks for their management.

As part of its work, the CMC  carried out a series of field visits to the island’s near and offshore CRIAEs to assess, inter alia, the issues militating against their effective management and the ecosystems of which they form a part.