Dear Editor,
I am writing in response to Mr Vinton Grant who recommends developing the Cockpit Country in his letter to the Observer on November 21.

I agree completely that a "balanced approach" involving all stakeholders is certainly what is needed to chart the way forward, but it is important to point out that in fact years of very balanced, participatory consultation have already taken place around the entire Cockpit area to ensure the residents' voices are heard. I myself had the privilege of working with a Government of Jamaica/World Bank-funded social assessment team in 1998 to explore if and how the Cockpit Country could be established as a protected area with support from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF).

We spent months meeting with people in every community and from all walks of life to garner their input and ideas as to how the area's biodiversity could be protected while also ensuring that the residents would benefit through truly sustainable and prosperous livelihood opportunities.

At the time, myriad options were put forward by local stakeholders for further exploration and assessment, including eco-tourism (nature trails, bird watching); butterfly ranches and zoos; science tourism or geo-tourism; cultural and heritage tourism; adventure tourism (rock climbing, caving, etc); agro-forestry in buffer zone areas; high-end organic agriculture in buffer zones; apiculture; hemp product development; high-end craft production; horticulture and exotic plant production for exporting; spring and mineral water production; medicinal plant production; essential oil production and neutraceuticals; bamboo production for affordable housing; park enforcement and co-management plus secondary support industries such as restaurants, inns and hotels.

Unfortunately, despite all these consultative efforts, the project did not move forward, in part because a guarantee that bauxite mining would never take place was not forthcoming.

I agree with Mr Grant's point that the Cockpit Country's people are its true beauty and just as important as the natural environment. Unfortunately though, it seems that they are also just as endangered if indeed many are being bought out by mining prospectors and moving from the area. And while mining has indeed brought prosperity in some parts of the island, it has also brought real health concerns, toxic waste, and irreplaceable loss of biodiversity.

It is perhaps timely now to revisit the livelihood ideas put forward by the stakeholders themselves in 1998 and to finally invest in enterprises that will protect and sustain both the biodiversity and people of the Cockpit Country.

Dr Maria Protz
PO Box 291
St Ann's Bay
protz@mail.infochan.com

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