Robert Lalah, Staff Reporter
A FEW dozen residents of the communities of Ramble, Shettlewood and Burnt Ground in Hanover yesterday staged a peaceful protest just outside the offices of the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) at Caledonia Avenue in St. Andrew.
The demonstration was part of the residents' efforts to halt the construction of a cemetery on the border of Shettlewood and Burnt Ground. The cemetery is being developed by the Delapenha Funeral Home.
The residents contend that the site on which the cemetery is to be built is a quarter of a mile from the area and 200 feet above the Shettlewood Spring, which supplies more than 30 districts with domestic water. They said they were worried about the possible health hazards this may cause and are calling for an environmental impact assessment (EIA) to be done.
According to Tindale Grizzle, a 66-year-old resident of Ramble who was among yesterday's demonstrators, all the protesters want the environmental procedures to be followed.
NEPA, NO GOOD
"That is all we want, and we can't get it all now. Over a year now we begging and we cannot get it. NEPA is no good to us," he said. "Dem want us to just accept this cemetery. Suppose it kill us off."
Political activist Dr. D.K. Duncan was part of the protest. He also called for the intervention of NEPA, saying the silence of the agency was unacceptable. He said a letter was sent to Public Defender Howard Hamilton seeking an injunction against the developers, which would halt the construction of the cemetery.
PERMISSION GRANTED
The Delapenha Funeral Home has received a permit from NEPA to develop the cemetery and has started construction at the site. No EIA was done before the permit was issued.
For its part, NEPA was silent yesterday. Attempts to get a response from the agency failed. However, last week, Dr. Grace Turner, manager of public education and corporate communication at NEPA, said approval for construction of the cemetery was granted based on consultation with several agencies. Among them were the Ministry of Health and the Mines and Geology Division of the Land and Environment ministry. In addition, Dr. Turner said the agency was satisfied that an EIA study was not necessary.
