Pressure is mounting on the Andrew Holness-led administration on Monday (November 16) as thousands of Jamaicans flooded social media spaces with an online petition urging the prime minister to reconsider the permission of mining at the Puerto Bueno Mountain in St Ann.

The petition, which was launched on Sunday and has since gathered more than 4,400 signatures, called on Holness to reverse his July 2020 ministerial decision to approve a permit for quarrying and mining at Puerto Bueno.

The backlash against the quarrying permit continues as Holness and the Puerto Bueno mountain became top trending topics on Twitter.

Jamaican environmentalist Wendy Lee, creator of the petition, argued that there was merit to the initial rejection of the quarrying permit by the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) as the area is a dry limestone forest with flora and fauna endemic to the island.

Lee posited further that despite PM Holness’ assurances “any damage to the environment will be mitigated by the 72 conditions of the permit”, technical experts warn those promises cannot be meaningfully monitored or replace the fragile ecosystem that currently exists at Puerto Bueno Mountain—should the project go awry as expected.

“The impacts from a quarry of this size (50 hectares) cannot be effectively mitigated,” Lee wrote, adding that no source of water has been identified for the project.

“A dry limestone forest ecosystem cannot be restored [and] relocation of individual species would be futile if it were even possible,” she continued.

The sudden and indefensible approval of the quarrying and mining permit appears to be contra protection laws drafted for the Dry Harbour Mountain, as it is also known, since the area is earmarked under the St Ann Confirmed Development Order of 2000.

“The application for quarrying was initially refused because it is incompatible with Jamaica’s framework of environmental policies, plans, laws and regulations that are in place to govern land-use decision-making,” the viral petition noted.

Lee posited that the government of Jamaica must assess project applications based on how they comply with these provisions.

Worryingly, the environmentalist said there stands no application and no environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the multi-phase project just announced as the “ultimate goal” of the project by Bengal Development Limited / Jamaica World.

“Prime Minister, please reconsider the decision to allow this project, and withdraw the permit!” the petition ended.

In May 2020, a quarry application was refused by several Government regulatory agencies before Bengal Development appealed to the Environment Minister, whose portfolio rests in the Office of the Prime Minister.

Holness overturned the refusal, saying that the project would create over 100 jobs and prop up the island’s ailing economy.

The outcry has been unrelenting, however, as stakeholders and outspoken members of the general public feel the loss of Puerto Bueno, an area of environmental significance and unique biodiversity, is irreplaceable.

For more information, or to sign the petition, click here.