JAMAICA'S OFFICIAL environmental watchdog has called for a boycott of public and private organisations that knowingly pollute the country's rivers and coastal waters.
Franklin McDonald, head of the National Environment Planning Agency (NEPA), threw out the challenge this week while addressing a public meeting in Ocho Rios.
"There needs to be a shift in the way we do things if we are to compete successfully in a global environment. We must get to the point where polluters will know that their names will be made public and we can only hope that this threat of exposure will convince them to change their procedures."
Mr. McDonald, who has been having a series of consultations with groups along the North Coast about water quality improvement along Jamaica's coastal shores, told the Ocho Rios crowd that the regulatory efforts of his agency needed the backing of strong consumer action to be fully effective.
The public, he said, should take a responsible decision to do business with only those companies that are serious about protecting the Jamaican environment, according to a release quoting the NEPA executive director.
Hosted by NEPA, the Coastal Water Quality Improvement Programme (CWIP) and the Ocho Rios Environmental Advisory Group (OREAG), the meeting was presented with data collected on the Ocho Rios coast and the White River which indicated that some businesses, communities and individuals were not being as careful as they should about using the waterways and disposal of solid and liquid waste.
Mr. McDonald cited garages, car washes and dry cleaning establishments along the coast as some of the businesses impacting negatively on coastal waters.
"It is ironic that we depend on the coasts for our livelihood by day, then spend the night and weekend destroying it," said the NEPA head.
Noting that NEPA has the technical ability to respond to any warning indicators of environmental problems, Mr. McDonald said his agency has forged vital partnerships with the Ministries of Health and Local Government, the University of the West Indies and civil society "to develop sustainable long-term solutions to such problems."
Participants in the meeting, including hoteliers and other tourism interests, restaurateurs, farmers and public and private sector interests, worked through the night to define strategies for ensuring the preservation of a healthy Ocho Rios coast and rivers.
The data, which is being compiled by CWIP in association with OREAG, will form the basis of a comprehensive education and environmental plan for implementation by the Ocho Rios community.
