Southern Belize Needs Your Help!

[Ralph Capeling]

Flots I suggest you think about coming to Placencia instead of going on a cruise. After reading your latest and your comment about the wives who don't dive, there is some great diving here for the guys and if the wives are interested in Maya culture (and they may not be now but could well become devotees if exposed to it), ziplining, jungle river tubing, cave tubing, jungle horseback riding, etc etc etc. Here you can be ashore and interact with the local people without being hassled. In the village we have some great restaurants with a wide range of menus (although stewed chicken, rice and beans tends to become a favorite quite quickly). You can decide, based on the weather any given day to explore the interior or go to a remote dive site (one you would not get to from the cruise ships you have been on).

I hope Belize was not a place that made you feel that you were annoying people by showing up. Belizeans tend to be very friendly people.

I suspect that if you come, you will reach the same conclusion that so many others have reached - large cruise ships should go to Belize but not to southern Belize. Small ones are fine and one has been coming here for years.

I like to see private businesses grow. It annoys me when people complain about the way things are and then refuse to make changes. Depending on a homogenous set of tourist activities (overnight SCUBA) severely limits your market and potential income.

But really, I have no stake in this. I travel every year with between 12 and 20 friends (depends on the year). The wives don't dive and most of the guys do, so we compromise and book cruises where the guys can dive and the wives can shop or hang out on a beach or find something else to do.

We're not alone. The ships are full of mixed groups like this and it works great in most ports. Belize is one of the few cruise ports that's very nearly hostile to cruise ship tourists.

But again, it's not a problem for me. After a number of years being bored wandering around the "tourist village", the wives really don't want to come back, which means that we'll probably start selecting cruises that don't include Belize.

We already skip Jamaica, and found that Limon, Costa Rica, Panama and Cartagena are more than happy to have day-tourists. Costa Rica, for example, has some awesome river-rafting and nobody made us feel like we were annoying them by showing up.

BTW, "mass tourism" isn't bad. It's only bad when poorly managed. If an area can't handle it, it's only because it's not managed correctly.

 

[koozemani]

BTW, "mass tourism" isn't bad. It's only bad when poorly managed. If an area can't handle it, it's only because it's not managed correctly.

Or when it's unwanted. You're talking about an area that does not have the infrastructure to support that many people, and building that infrastructure would fundamentally change that area.

 

[Ralph Capeling]

[h=2]Resistance expected for new project, Hon. Manuel Heredia says[/h]Belize Minister of Tourism and Culture, Manuel Heredia, Jr., told Amandala Wednesday, at the launch of Belize’s draft culture policy (2013), that the controversy over a statement made by Hugh Darley, hired by Norwegian Cruise Line to develop the story concept for its new destination island at Harvest Caye in Southern Belize, has been “taken too far.”The minister went on to deny that Darley said anything about the dügü – a sacred Garifuna ceremony – at a recent press conference held in Belize City.“I think it was taken too far, because that was not what was really mentioned… They spoke about the Garifuna, but nothing about the religious part,” Heredia claimed – notwithstanding that multiple media houses have since aired the comments made by Darley.“He said dügü, he did,” we insisted to the minister.“I was listening very carefully and he was talking about the culture of the Garifuna,” Heredia maintained, in our interview.To recap, Darley had said that, “At three o’clock in the afternoon, we will tell the guests, guess what? We’re going to do the dance called the dügü. Why? Because nobody ever gets a chance to see that. It’s like it’s the festival every day. So the idea is we’re going to tell that story and let that be our signage and our graphics and our color…”The mistake, some believe, demonstrates the lack of consultation with leaders in the Garifuna community. Since the comments have been reported in the media, the Garifuna community has issued a call to Belizean authorities to ensure that their cultural rights – including patent rights – are protected in the proposed venture, which proposes to feature the Garifuna culture at the Harvest Caye cruise port.Upbeat about the Norwegian project, Heredia told us today: “One year after the project materializes, people will be extremely happy.”He added that, “Anything that is new in Belize, there is a lot of resistance. For some reason or the other, our Belizean people, they are very cautious I would say—or probably they are right—but I believe that we are supposed to listen and at the end of the day, we have a right to govern and to make sure that we do what is right for this country.”Heredia said that as for the people of Placencia, “If you don’t want it, fine! We will not do it.” However, he added that, “The other villages that want to be part of it, let them come onboard.”Heredia said that the consultations on the proposed project have been ongoing, and they will continue to talk with the agencies they want to bring onboard.Everything has to go to Cabinet for its consideration and vetting, and once there is consensus, then they move forward, the minister explained.He also spoke of the value of having a good technical team: “I believe that I have excellent commonsense, because a combination of good technical people with good common sense, at the end of the day, you can come out with the best result, and I believe I have that capacity…“I might not be highly educated, but I have a wealth of common sense, which a lot of people do not have.”

 

[chillyinCanada]

Flots, you should consider what Ralph is saying. Yes, I understand the "reasoning" of your group but frankly, when it comes to Belize you really don't have a clue.

As Doc would say "you are like a blind man touching part of an elephant."

 

[Ralph Capeling]

[h=2]Cruise ships make me sad, Belize Edition[/h]Norwegian Cruise Line is preparing to screw up Belize.

“Norwegian Cruise Line has bought two islands in southern Belize to develop as a port of call for its western Caribbean cruises.” Read more here
​

Every time someone boards a cruise ship bound for the Caribbean destination, God kills a puppy.
Not everyone in Belize is on board with the project.
The areas to be impacted largely are just south of Placencia. It can’t be good.

Bye bye Harvest Caye.
​

---------- Post added September 1st, 2013 at 07:19 AM ----------

Laura Viola 12:51am Sep 1 An 11 minute video mostly guys reeling in fish, but worth watching if you are interested in other communities experience with the cruise industry. Some shots of cruise ships in action in case you have never seen one in person. I haven't. Seems to me Key West and Placencia ain't all that different. Except of course the residents of Key West do actually get to VOTE on it. $35 million tax money about to be spent so cruise lines can up their profits by a few billion. The road GOB is definitely on since the cruise lines will no doubt demand more and more infrastructure be provided for them or they will pull out...yada,yada, yada. Key West ponders the epic questions - are tarpon (reefs/existing lifestyle) worth saving, are cruise ships worth saving? Will Placencia turn into cheap T-shirt shops and crude slogans like Key West ? http://www.headhuntersflyshop.com/key-west-harbor-tarpon/ And this blog where same folks talk about cruise ships and Placencia. http://bonefishonthebrain.com/2013/08/15/cruise-ships-make-me-sad-belize-edition/ Key West Harbor TarponHeadhunters Fly Shop www.headhuntersflyshop.com Here is an excellent video by Key West guide Will Benson of World Angling. Will is one of the best v...

 

[Ralph Capeling]

 

[koozemani]

All this looks good, but do you think the muckety-mucks in Belmopan will care? Is there any legal recourse or injunction to stop this?

 

[Ralph Capeling]

[h=2]hose $100 Million should Belize Accept?[/h]
SEP9Written by: Godfrey Smith
Monday, September 09, 2013


They walked along Princess Margaret Drive in the faint predawn light audibly discussing something. I heard the word "Manati" and listened more closely. "...ata Manati noh jost deh eena wan spot; dehn deh aal oava di place," a female voice said. Another said something about the British leaving. The first female voice again: "Soh weh hapn wi mos aalways stay dong; wi mosn opn wi yaiy?" she asked dismissively of the concern expressed by conservationists that the Stake Bank/Drowned Caye project would affect the habitat of the manatees.

The Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Lines wishes to invest $100 million in a cruise ship port/theme park/island destination on the privately owned Harvest Caye in the south of Belize. Belizean entrepreneur Mike Feinstein wishes to invest $100 million in a cruise ship port/residential development/theme park utilizing two private cayes - North Drowned Caye and Stake Bank - off the coast of Belize City. Doing both projects is probably not feasible. So whose investment project should Belize favour?

Harvest Caye Project

The government's MOU with NCL contains a questionable clause that suggests an intention to short cut the Environmental Impact Assessment process on the pretence that since an EIA had already been done for a previous, unrelated resort development project on Harvest Caye only a modified EIA was now necessary. The NCL project will feature the single biggest volume of dredging the country has ever seen. It is doubtful that the partial assignment of EIA clearance from one kind of project to a very different kind is within the spirit and intent of the Belize's environmental laws. Whether NCL will go ahead after Prime Minister Dean Barrow's post-MOU public declaration that only NCL ships will be able to dock at the proposed port remains to be seen.

Mr. Feinstein's Stake Bank/Drowned Caye plans are about eight years old and have gone through a number of revisions. His project comprises two causeways. One connects North Drowned Caye to Belize City.

Stake Bank Project

The other connects North Drowned Caye to Stake Bank and runs through the Swallow Caye Wildlife Sanctuary - a haven for manatees. Mr. Feinstein can flash EIA approval for this and understandably would like an MOU with GOB for his project. A bureaucratic tug-of-war is underway among the mandarins of Belmopan some of whom support NCL and others who are aligned with the Feinstein Group.

As things stand, the NCL project would seem like the surer investment bet. There is a question as to whether the Feinstein Group has actually secured a source of funding for its project. Surer investment bet or not, the NCL project should be rejected because it goes against the government's own National Sustainable Tourism Master Plan.

Why should one clause in a master plan written by a bunch of consultants stand in the way of a much needed $100 million job-creating, opportunity-generating investment? The reason is that Belize is terminally infected with accidental development syndrome. Belize grows by fits and starts - haphazardly. It's about time that it pursues a path based on mature consideration.

The tourism master plan is a serious, comprehensive, well-researched document crafted after full national consultations, taken to the Belize Cabinet and endorsed by this government. Effectively, it says that it is in the long term interest of the country to keep mass cruise tourism out of the pristine areas of southern Belize. The decision to be an eco-tourism destination has deep significance which is perhaps not always sufficiently grasped or remembered.

It means choosing a brand of tourism that attempts to minimize the impact on the flora and fauna while other nations race to destroy theirs to create the artificial, emetic Cancun experience. The eco tourism brand means pursuing policies and projects which are germane to an understanding and respect for delicate ecosystems while at the same time providing a genuine touristic experience which in the long-term will become priceless in those remaining areas of the world where ecosystems remain intact. This is not a matter of "locking up the bush", it is intelligent, responsible planning; it ensures tourism remains sustainable through generations.

The letter written by six past presidents of the Belize Tourism Industry Association describing the decision as "a far reaching shift in policy with irreversible consequences" and asking the prime minister to reconsider it is quite plainly the truth. Apart from the wisdom of its cautionary message, the letter is an excellent example of industry leaders setting aside any political differences or fear of victimization to take a firm, unambiguous, unified position on a fundamental policy issue that affects Belize.

Mr. Feinstein's project has the advantage of being based in the Belize District. Since mass cruise tourism - the very antithesis of eco tourism - is a reality in Belize, it should be confined and anchored to a port facility based within the Belize District which already absorbs much of the mass tourism footprint.

The early morning walkers on Princess Margaret Drive were right. Manatees are not only found in the North Drowned Caye/Swallow Caye area of Belize. They can be found from the Rio Hondo all along the coast of Belize and down to the Sarstoon River. But the site of Mr. Feinstein's proposed project is within one of the three most important manatee habitats in Belize. It is within the Drowned Caye/Swallow Caye five mile radius where manatees can predictably be found and viewed in clear waters as compared to the brown, opaque waters of the Southern Lagoon and the Placencia Lagoon which are equally important habitats.

We must indeed open our eyes - but to more than just the fact that the country needs investment and development. Our eyes should be open to the fact that manatees are on the IUCN red list of threatened species vulnerable to extinction. One of the major threats to manatee population is declining habitat and the onward march of coastal development. Belize had contributed to the preservation of global biodiversity by designating Swallow Caye as a wildlife sanctuary for manatees. Not even local marine biologists research, tag and study the manatees in this sanctuary.

The proposal to run a causeway through a specially designated manatee wildlife sanctuary calls for extremely close scrutiny and informed consideration. The full impact on the species will not be understood for years but certainly it is not a simple matter of the resident manatee population migrating to eat sea grass elsewhere. It's far more complex than that. The Philip Goldson International Airport runway expansion project disrupted the habitat of tapirs leading to a number of deaths from vehicular collisions because it wasn't a simple matter of tapirs disappearing into the next nearby bush to continue foraging. For an endangered species this kind of disruption has a substantially negative impact.

Belize needs investment and development - but at what cost? Should the habitat of the manatee, a prized, iconic specie of our uniquely rich biodiversity, be sacrificed to create "3,000 jobs"? Should we hasten the collapse of a specie (that evolved 50 million years ago compared to modern humans' mere 200,000 years) to pursue Disneyesque development that destroys sensitive ecosystems ultimately sustaining us just to rebuild artificial replicas in their place for the hordes to gawk at. In the end it's a matter of the value we place on our unique natural heritage, our understanding of our role and place within it and our sense of obligation to other species and future generations of humans.







Copyright ©2013 Godfrey Smith

 

[flots am]

Flots, you should consider what Ralph is saying. Yes, I understand the "reasoning" of your group but frankly, when it comes to Belize you really don't have a clue.

As Doc would say "you are like a blind man touching part of an elephant."

I understand perfectly. People are afraid of change. They always are. Everywhere.

Some people want tourists. Other people don't. It's not really all that complicated.

FWIW, if Belize had been able to make the current port and the surrounding area more tourist (and resident, for that matter) friendly, the cruise line wouldn't be looking for new development.

flots.

 

[koozemani]

Thanks for keeping updated Ralph.