Western Bureau: The Negril Area Environmental Trust (NEPT), which manages the Royal Palm Reserve at Sheffield in Westmoreland, is expected to further develop the facility and transform it into a major tourist attraction over the next three months.

According to executive director, Brian Zane, they are currently advertising for a manager to spearhead the development process.

“A manager would be essential to the effective operations of a facility of that size. I would think that any operation of that size would really warrant having somebody there fulltime to not just oversee the operations but to help manage activities and projects that will be happening at the reserve,” Zane told the Observer Thursday.

After all, he said, the reserve was not only a tourism venture but also an avenue for environmental education and community development activities.

NEPT, which was formed in 1994 and seeks to protect and conserve Negril’s environment and eco-system, acquired a 10-year lease for the 250-acre reserve last January.

The reserve consists of a swamp forest and wetlands of the Negril Great Morass and royal palms endemic to that area of the island. Visitors have the opportunity to enjoy bird watching, tour the property and take guided tours along the boardwalk to view some of the island’s wildlife.

The facility also provides for weddings and other special events as well as scientific research.

There is also a restaurant, a museum and a recreation centre, which was designed and constructed by the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) in 1989.

It was the PCJ that took the decision to build a reserve, which came out of a proposal to mine peat in the Negril Great Morass in the mid-1980s, in a bid to protect the royal palms endemic to the area.

Now, in addition to securing a manager for the facility, Zane said they were also in the process of acquiring certification from the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) for the reserve as an attraction.

It was about a month ago, he said, that the TPDCo conducted a site inspection. And coming out of that inspection, he said there were a number of requirements they needed to fulfil, among them the registration of a security guard.

Once they are TPDCo certified, the NEPT head said they would intensify their marketing efforts to attract more visitors to the reserve and await the benefits this would bring.

“I would think that there would be increased visitation and increased awareness of the wetlands and distribution of benefits to community members, (like) the promotion of employment,” he said.

At the moment, however, he said while the interest in the facility had been “resounding” this past year, there was room for improvement.

“The primary limitation of not having that certification is not having the ability to market or secure sale through established marketing channels,” he said.

“Not having that certification has inhibited our ability to tap into the all-inclusive hotels (and) most, if not all, the tour carriers. This has drastically impacted the numbers of people visiting.”

Meanwhile, he said they were setting up a craft training and production facility.

“We have buildings that have been constructed already and we are currently in the process of equipping those and putting together a training programme. That would basically help to provide both training and employment for local and surrounding community members,” Zane said.

They, he said, would also further develop the museum, which would serve as a “focal point” for educational groups and environmental education.

The museum was set up with the help of the Royal Netherlands Embassy, USAID and the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica.