Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan for St. Kitts and Nevis - WIDECAST

St. Kitts and Nevis Sea Turtles…
ated under the aegis of Government, NGOs, and the media to alert fishermen and recreational
boaters of the need to properly dispose of garbage. Great advances in public awareness have
been made as a result of the NHCS-sponsored Beach Clean-up campaign in 1992. Residents,
including many school children, participated in the clean-up which was part of the international
coastal clean-up campaign of the Center for Marine Conservation (Washington D.C.). Participants
learned how to categorize waste and how to develop a database to organize the information.
They also gained an enhanced awareness of how much ocean-borne waste litters the shores
of Nevis. The NHCS has recommended that a coordinated national waste disposal system be
designed and implemented, and that advance notice be given to boaters that such facilities exist.
It is noteworthy that at an April meeting in the Bahamas, Caribbean government
representatives proposed that "uniform standards on pollution and dumping . . . be imposed by
CTO on all cruise lines." Furthermore, Caribbean governments want all cruise ships plying trade
in the region's waters to be fitted with incinerators. They also want them to clean up garbage
"already identified in the Caribbean as coming from cruise ships." Eventually, if Caribbean
governments have their way, a Caribbean-wide "no-dumping" policy will be instituted (Anon.,
1992). By ratifying MARPOL (see section 4.32), St. Kitts/Nevis can support the international
community in taking a stand against the enormous volume of persistent debris dumped into the
Caribbean Sea (and throughout the world) each year.
4.145 Oil exploration, production, refining, transport
St. Kitts/Nevis participated in the development of a Subregional Oil Pollution
Contingency Plan at a Meeting of Experts held in St. Lucia in 1984 and the Government recently
circulated a draft National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (Blake, 1992). The draft Plan notes that
marine traffic, especially oil tankers, using local ports or in transit through coastal waters
presents the risk of marine oil pollution from collisions, groundings, sinkings, oil cargo and
bunker transfer, and other marine incidents. Such pollution can threaten recreation areas, sea
birds, marine life, coastal installations, and fisheries. Response to accidental spillage of oil
requires careful advance planning to ensure that the impact of the oil spill is minimized. The
stated purpose of the Plan, therefore, is to "delineate responsibilities for the operational response
to marine emergencies which could result in the spillage of oil and other hazardous pollutants
into the marine environment." Several objectives were listed, including identifying high risk
areas and priority coastal areas for protection and clean-up, providing adequate oil spill response
equipment, training personnel, providing a framework for coordination and communication,
enacting necessary legislation, etc. One shortfall in the present draft is the lack of an explanation
of liability and prosecution if Government is the culprit. In addition, more emphasis should be
given to cooperation between corporations and Government in the prevention and clean-up of
spills and accidents (David Robinson, Chief Curator, NHCS, pers. comm., 1992).
In addition to attending the Meeting of Experts held in St. Lucia in 1984, St. Kitts/Nevis
was also represented at a recent Caribbean Sub-Regional Seminar on Environmental Sensitivity
Index Mapping for Oil Spill Response convened in Kingston, Jamaica. As a result, civil servants
have received training in oil spill response strategies and an inventory of the St. Kitts coastline
with regard to environmental sensitivity has been initiated. The inventory will ensure better preparation
in the event of an oil spill because details of shoreline type and condition will be known
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