KINGSTON, Jamaica — Opposition Spokesman on Environment and Climate Resilience Omar Newell has criticised recent comments by Environment Minister Matthew Samuda linking Jamaica’s biggest mangrove threat to the illegal cutting of trees for firewood, arguing that the claims are inconsistent with findings in the Government’s National Mangrove and Swamp Forest Management Plan 2023–2033.

Newell’s criticism follows a Jamaica Observer article on June 15 which quoted Samuda as saying, “The biggest issue affecting our mangroves is the illegal cutting of them to be used for firewood.”

“If you don’t reduce poverty, mangroves become charcoal, and that’s where we have significant degradation of our mangrove forest — not from housing developments or commercial developments,” added Samuda at a Rotaract District 7020 Conference at Ocean Coral Spring Resort in Trelawny last Friday.

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While acknowledging that illegal cutting of mangroves is unlawful and must be addressed, Newell said the Government’s own data points to development activities as a significant driver of mangrove loss.

“The minister’s comments are extremely troubling, especially in a post-Hurricane Melissa Jamaica, considering the important role mangroves play in protecting our coastal communities during storms,” Newell said in a statement on Wednesday.

Citing the National Mangrove and Swamp Forest Management Plan 2023–2033, Newell noted that approximately 19.56 per cent of Jamaica’s mangrove losses have been attributed to the tourism, commerce and transportation sectors.

“The Government’s own report states clearly that most mangrove losses were related to tourism development. These are not Opposition figures. They are findings contained in an official national management plan that is available to the minister and his ministry,” he said.

Newell further noted that the comments were reportedly made from a location where healthy mangroves were removed during phases of that project’s development.

“I am concerned that the public is being encouraged to focus primarily on vulnerable Jamaicans seeking a livelihood, while official reports point to development activities as the major documented source of mangrove loss. Environmental accountability cannot be reserved for the poor while the larger drivers of environmental degradation receive less scrutiny,” he continued.

The Opposition spokesperson stressed that Jamaica’s mangroves are among the country’s most important natural climate resilience assets, providing protection against storm surge, coastal erosion and the increasingly severe impacts of climate change.

“In the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, Jamaicans understand better than ever that mangroves are not simply trees along the coastline. They are part of our national defence against climate disasters,” Newell said.

He added that the Government, as steward of significant portions of Jamaica’s forested wetlands, bears a special responsibility to ensure that public policy and public statements are guided by evidence.

“The protection of our mangroves requires honesty, consistency and a willingness to confront every source of destruction. Whether the threat comes from illegal cutting or from large-scale development, the standard must be the same.”

Newell is therefore calling on Minister Samuda to clarify his remarks and publicly acknowledge the findings of the National Mangrove and Swamp Forest Management Plan 2023–2033 so that the national conversation can be guided by evidence rather than “selective narratives”.

“Jamaicans deserve an environmental policy that follows the facts. We cannot ignore the findings of our own national management plan while placing disproportionate blame on those with the least economic power in our society,” Newell said. “If we are serious about protecting our mangroves, we must be equally serious about confronting the principal documented causes of their destruction.”