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

CEP Technical Report No. 17
crude oil. On 15 March 1992, a pipe ruptured during ship-to-shore pumping of #6 fuel oil to a
transfer station at St. Eustatius Terminal on the west coast of St. Eustatius, Netherlands Antilles.
One hundred barrels of crude oil were released to the sea in a slick that headed northwest out
across the rich fishing grounds of the Saba Bank. Heavy seas broke up the slick before it entered
U. S. waters, but tar balls eventually fouled the coast of Puerto Rico (Zandy Hillis, U. S.
National Park Service, pers. comm., 1992) and Saba (Sybesma, 1992).
An oil-contaminated environment can be lethal to sea turtles and incubating eggs.
Behavioural experiments indicate that green and loggerhead sea turtles possess limited ability to
avoid oil slicks, and physiological experiments show that the respiration, skin, some aspects of
blood chemistry and composition, and salt gland function of 15-18 month old loggerheads are
significantly affected by exposure to crude oil preweathered for 48 hours (Vargo et al., 1986).
There is some evidence to suggest that hawksbills are also vulnerable to oil pollution.
Hawksbills (predominantly juveniles), were only 2.2% (34/1551) of the total sea turtle strandings
in Florida between 1980-1984, yet comprised 28.0% of petroleum-related strandings. Oil and tar
fouling was both external and internal. Chemical analysis of internal organs provided clear
evidence that crude oil from tanker discharge had been ingested (Vargo et al., 1986). Carr
(1987b) reported juvenile hawksbills (to 20 cm) "stranded [in Florida] with tar smeared
sargassum"; some individuals had ingested tar. He noted that the Gulf Stream at times carries oil
from both European sources and the Gulf of Mexico into Florida waters. More recently,
following the Vestabella barge spill, a hawksbill soaked in oil was found dead near Guayama on
the south coast of Puerto Rico (Benito Pinto, Puerto Rico DNR, pers. comm., 1992).
4.146 Agricultural run-off and sewage
There are no data to indicate the direct effects of agrochemicals and sewage on sea
turtles, but the cumulative effect of these poisons and high BOD wastes on the marine
environment certainly weakens the capacity of coral reefs and other affected benthic systems to
support life, including sea turtles. Agricultural chemicals are widely used in St. Kitts/Nevis, but
there is no monitoring of their ultimate fate, either in the environment or in agricultural products.
Most surely enter the sea at some point. The twin challenges are to regulate the use of
agrochemicals in established industries in order to minimize negative impacts, and also to make
careful choices about future agricultural investments. Nevis, for instance, is considering revitalizing
its cotton industry and also introducing a cut flower industry, both heavy users of chemicals
(CCA, 1991). Should either of these options be fully implemented, the use of agrochemicals
may increase dramatically. The use of fertilizers and biocides is not limited to agricultural crops.
Their use is increasing on hotel grounds, ornamental plantations, and golf courses.
Fortunately some progress has been made in the country's ability to monitor and control
the use of fertilizers and poisons. In addition to training governmental personnel in coastal
monitoring techniques, the Caribbean Environmental Health Institute in St. Lucia has recently
provided approximately US$ 10,000 worth of laboratory equipment (N. Singh, CEHI, pers.
comm. in CCA, 1991). Recommendations have been made to renovate an old sugar cane lab
into a central environmental lab for the country, which would include the CEHI equipment. The
Government has enacted legislation for pesticide regulation (Pesticides Act, No. 20 of 1973).
The Act provides a framework for drafting regulations, the organization and role of a Pesticides
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