Tourism plan under threat, says environmentalist

FALMOUTH, Trelawny — Chairman of the South Trelawny Environment Agency (STEA) Hugh Dixon is warning that bauxite mining in the Cockpit Country could undermine Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett’s ambition of attracting 10 million visitors annually and generating US$10 billion in tourism earnings within 10 years. Dixon argues that the Cockpit Country is too important to Jamaica’s long-term economic and environmental security to be placed at risk by an extractive industry. He is of the view that its value extends beyond its natural beauty to water security, agriculture, and the development of nature-based tourism.

“The vision of Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism, is dependent on this landscape being protected. It’s not just about advocacy,” Dixon said. “It’s about prudent development planning that will see us achieve great ideas like the 10×10×10.” In June this year Bartlett launched his 10x10x10 growth initiative amid at attracting 10 million visitors and generating US$10 billion in tourism earnings over the next 10 years.

Dixon warned that mining could contaminate or disrupt water systems feeding the island’s major rivers, with potential consequences for communities and tourism activity along the coast. He is urging policymakers to weigh the relatively short-term returns from a finite bauxite industry against the longer-term economic potential of tourism, agriculture, and the country’s water resources. Dixon noted that Jamaica’s tourism industry is concentrated largely in the west, stretching from Ocho Rios through Montego Bay and Negril and into parts of St Elizabeth.

Much of the water supporting these tourism centres, he said, originates in or is associated with the Cockpit Country. Five major watersheds — the Rio Bueno, Martha Brae, Great River, Montego and Black rivers — are associated with the region and provide critical water resources for western and central Jamaica, he outlined. The head of STEA therefore sees any expansion of bauxite mining in the area as a potential threat to an industry that currently earns Jamaica about US$4 billion annually and which Bartlett hopes to expand significantly under the 10×10×10 vision.

In contrast, Dixon pointed out that bauxite generates roughly US$600 million annually and is a finite resource, with Jamaica’s remaining reserves expected to last approximately 30 to 40 years at current extraction levels.