Renowned oceanographer Jean-Michel Cousteau has added his voice to those of opponents of cruise-ship berthing in Cayman, as the islands draw closer to a referendum on the issue on 30 April.
In a letter issued publicly on Friday, Cousteau, president of marine conservation organisation Ocean Futures Society, said he was “deeply concerned” about plans for cruise ship berthing in George Town Harbour.
Saying he had been coming to Cayman since the 1970s, Cousteau, said, “The lure of the Cayman Islands has always been their coral reefs and clear waters. During the past 50+ years, I have seen tourism increase dramatically, particularly the cruise ship component.”
Acknowledging that tourism has improved the local economy, he noted, “there are limits”, adding that it is Grand Cayman’s natural environment that draws people – including cruise shippers – to the island.
‘Reefs already stressed’
“The reefs are already stressed from climate change, overfishing, and increased nutrient input,” he said. “Maintaining Cayman’s reefs requires that we reduce human impact, not increase it. The proposed expansion of Grand Cayman’s cruise ship berthing infrastructure would physically destroy nearby reefs, and the subsequent increase in sediment created by dredging would certainly harm reefs.”
He added that during his 70 years of diving, he had seen many communities develop
commercial infrastructure along their coastlines, with dredging and ship bow thrusters stirring up sediment that spreads from the site, covering reefs and killing corals.
“The reality is that mitigation in the ocean for such projects is impossible, and I think past
environmental impact assessments have made this clear,” he said.
“It is heartening to see that Cayman’s Conservation Law states that the Government shall undertake no projects which will harm the environment. It is clear that the project being proposed would definitely harm the environment. This is why I am against the proposed expansion of the George Town cruise ship berthing infrastructure.”
Stating that his stance is far from an anti-tourism one, he said he had a long history of supporting tourism here, including being invited in 1994 to be the spokesperson for responsible tourism in the Cayman Islands and working closely with the then tourism minister, the late Thomas Jefferson, and the then director of tourism Angela Martins, who is also opposed to the cruise berthing plan.
Cousteau added that he hoped decision makers “will see that the value of keeping what draws tourists to their island – the ocean and its reefs – is far more valuable in the long run than more cruise ships and a congested George Town. The environment is the heritage of the Caymanian people and decisions made today will have consequences for generations to come.”
Earle: Natural world is ‘the real treasure’
Safeguarding those, she said, “really depends on taking care of the natural world”.
“It’s important to first do no harm, to really take into account that the real value of Grand Cayman [is] the coastal waters, the coral reefs, the creatures who live there – that is irreplaceable.
“That is the real treasure that must be protected. Everything else depends on maintaining healthy eco-systems on the land, and certainly in the sea. What we do now will determine our future.”
Earle’s Mission Blue organisation in 2019 named George Town Harbour as one of its ‘Hope Spots’ – one of 156 places in the world recognised for their critical importance to the health of the ocean. Little Cayman has also been designated as a Mission Blue Hope Spot.
On Friday, 30 April, Caymanian voters will go to the polls to decide in a referendum – one of three being held on Election Day – on whether cruise berthing infrastructure should be considered for the country.