Section of Long Bay in Beef Island to be named as ‘protected area’
A section of Long Bay on Beef Island is to become a Protected Area and Marine Park.
The National Parks Act of 2006 defines a national/marine park as a legally protected natural area of land or sea containing major natural features, scenery, wildlife or habitats that are not materially altered by human occupation or exploitation. This area, under law, is to be perpetually maintained with conservation and management objectives.
The Ministry of Natural Resources made the announcement about naming part of Long Bay as a protected area on Monday.
The public will be invited to provide feedback on how to maintain the protected area. The ministry is seeking feedback in three key areas — Conservation, Economic Development and Education & Community Engagement.
“The goals under Education and Community Engagement are to improve understanding of the life-supporting processes and other benefits provided by natural ecosystems by preserving natural ecosystems and providing opportunities for ecological and other scientific research. Another goal is to demonstrate that protected areas generate improved livelihoods and other social benefits for local communities,” the ministry explained.
It added: “In the area of Economic Development, the goals are to expand and diversify the role of the natural resource base in the economy of the Virgin Islands by improving and sustaining the livelihoods of residents, by protecting and increasing their earning capacity. The ministry will also be seeking to protect the supply and quality of the natural resources that support economic activities and promote resource harvesting and land management practices that maintain the integrity of the natural resource base.”
Meanwhile, the goals of conservation are to preserve the ‘natural and historical heritage’ and ‘protect natural areas that are important for the production of important species of plants and animals’, the ministry said.
The section of Long Bay which will become a protected area has not been specified.
Copyright 2024 BVI News, Media Expressions Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
You don’t even know which end of the island you are talking about.
There are 2 long bays dummy. This 1 is at beef island, not the 1 west end.
All mangrove areas were to be treated as cultural preservation. What happened to the rules that were established under the National Park Trust and the Conservation Department. It is truly said to see where most of the mangroves are being destroyed by dredging and landfills. The whole of Long Bay, Beef Island, to include the Pond, should be preserved. Government needs to stop selling out our Soil. Soon we as Indigenous Virgin Islanders, going no longer deemed to Belong!
You are not indigenous to this land. Your are indigenous to Africa. Nigeria more specifically. Stop talking like you were here from the beginning of time. You are an occupant just as the colonial whites and have no connection to this land. Learn some history!! If your worried about the land then close the Territory to all and keep the land and starve to death. No going to the US to buy food and everything else you need
Then let the bush grow back in that area so no one go there
We used to be able to drive the whole of Trellis Bay over to the point. Wa happen?
@ ANONYMOUS…everybody on the planet are all indigenous to AFRICA. Don’t mind the noise and all the hype…Africa is the cradle of civilization…life started there and spread to the rest of the planet. On the other hand some of us were here before Columbus and are just as indigenous as you can get…the washing of the brain is playing havoc with our understanding…hope you wake up in time.
Any preservation of lands anywhere is always a win win for the country from which such lands are preserved.
And we should feel no differently in this case. Less human footprints anywhere,egardless of square footage, is a good thing for the continued beauty of this country!
This is a farce!!! This is a scheme to take vital Virgin Islands properties. Just look around the region. Other island countries declare an area as a “national park” to so-call “protect” it, and then they allow some group or corporation to build on it and show the “locals” how to care for it. Then they charge a fee to allow access to the area. Overtime, the area is out of the control of the local government and it’s people and into the hands of foreign interest. COME ON!!! WAKE UP PEOPLE!!! See what our “leaders’ are doing to our country…smh… Just ask Jamaica, Hawaii, St. Johns…etc. #staywoke