CARIBBEAN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION POLICIES

Abstract

The Environmental policy is classified by themes which is a label is used to refer to closely interrelated environmental problems. For the purpose of this paper, the author considers the themes related to the Maritime industry, such as – climate change, Toxic and hazardous pollutants, Waste disposal and Resource Dissipation. This paper is concerned specifically with the Caribbean Sea as it relates to environmental protection policy.

The Caribbean is a region of the Americas consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (most of which enclose the sea), and the surrounding coasts. The region is located southeast of North America, east of Central America, and to the north and west of South America. The Caribbean islands are an island chain 4,020 kilometres (2,500 mi) long and no more than 257 kilometres (160 mi) wide at any given point. They enclose the Caribbean Sea.1 A grouping of the Caribbean islands have established a regional integration group – CARICOM which operates as a single market, to cooperate in foreign policy matters, and to promote functional cooperation in a variety of areas vital to social and economic development of the region and its people. All Caribbean islands are members of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Why does the Caribbean need Environmental Protection Policies?

Most states located in the Caribbean Sea (CS) are heavily reliant on sea transportation for their economic sustainability. The attractiveness of the Caribbean as a market for goods and services has given rise to this dependence. The region’s classification as the number-one destination for the cruise industry2, inspired by the warm predictable climate, proximity to the US, and pristine tropical waters, has also 1 . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbean - retrieved 10 March 2008).

2 http://www.cruiseandferryreview.com/article.asp?ArticleID=1242124&Issue=53226 – retrieved 15March 2008)

attracted other water based activities such as charter yachts, private sailing, power boating and jet skis. Meanwhile the strategic location of the Panama Canal to the west as a gateway for shipping from pacific shipping lanes destined for the North American east coast has seen the increased passage of ships through the CS. The volume of intra-regional sea trade and the free movements of persons amongst CARICOM Member States are expected to increase because of incentives to trade in the CARICOM Single Market. This spaghetti-like movement of vessels within and non-stop passage through the region has increased the likelihood of incidents that can threaten monumental damage to its marine environment.

Moreover, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) with their fragile marine resources are susceptible to the effects of climate change and man made pollution. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recognises SIDS and Africa as being particularly vulnerable, and adds to this the Least Developed Countries (LDCs)3. Therefore, as the region prepares to combat the effects of climate change, there is an urgent need for a regional environmental protection policy to manage the threats that could create environmental degradation.

International Conventions

The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) is the main international pollution prevention instrument and the region is encouraged to ratify, as well as to develop the domestic legislation to reflect this convention and its Annexes. The IMO has provided model legislation to assist member states. Additionally, there are other marine pollution conventions under the realm of the IMO, they are:

International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on Ships, 2001;

Protocol on Preparedness, Response and Co-operation to Pollution Incidents by Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS Protocol), 2000;

International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation (OPRC), 1990;

Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, 1972;

International Convention relating to Intervention on the High Seas in Cases of Oil Pollution Casualties (INTERVENTION), 1969;

International Convention for the Control and Management of Ballast Water and Sediments (BALLAST WATER), 2004.

Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matters (London Convention 1972).

Another multinational environmental agreement is the Cartagena Convention, initiated by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) under its Regional Seas Program. Its Area of application comprises the marine environment of the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the areas of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent thereto, south of 30 north latitude and within 200 nautical miles of the Atlantic Coasts of the States. 

3 http://www.iied.org/pubs/pdfs/17022IIED.pdf - retrieved 15 March 2008

The Convention requires the adoption of measures aimed at preventing, reducing and controlling pollution from ships, caused by dumping, from sea-bed activities, airborne pollution and land-based sources and activities4. However, just like other global and regional multilateral environmental conventions, the level of implementation of the obligations deriving from this convention is hard to accomplish5.

Keywords: Marine environment, MARPOL Convention, Cartagena Convention, wider Caribbean region, plankton, panamax, post-panamax.

Overview

Liner and tramp merchant ships carry approximately 90% of the Caribbean’s intra and extra regional trade. These vessels anchor at and use the facilities of regional ports. Ocean transport moves a variety of solid and liquid bulk cargoes which require varying complexities of vessel, crew competence and shore-side support. There is also a proliferation of smaller, regionally-owned ships operating the inter-island trade, moving dry goods and agricultural cargoes. These ships provide an invaluable service especially to the eastern and southern Caribbean region since they transport cargo and passengers and provide an indispensable link to ports not normally covered by other sources. Safety of these vessels is a major concern to policy makers in the region.Maritime transport is therefore vital for the conduct of regional and international trade in the Caribbean. 6

Interest in merchant shipping in this region increased in recent years. The reasons for this being the need to meet the objectives of the regional agreements among member states of CARICOM, for free movement of people and goods to meet the demands of growing industries and globalization. This interest has also been deviating into activities related to merchant shipping such as ship registries and crew supply agencies. Of concern in this regard is the scarcity of proper regional monitoring mechanisms by flag states in the region.

According to IMO regional adviser for the Caribbean – Lieutenant Commander Curtis Roach, the number of Caribbean flag vessels have risen form 3,724 in 1996 to 4,998 in 2005; and gross tonnage has moved from 35 million in 1996 to 43 million in 1999.

Many Caribbean islands depend upon the Tourism industry as a main economic earner. These islands pride themselves with the attractions that tourists yearn and therefore the emergence of the cruise and yachting sectors. As the tourism market expands the amount of foreign direct investment increase as hotels and coastal resort developments emerge, these in one way or another impact the marine environment. In addition the peripheral activities associated with the cruise and yachting such as power boating, jet skiing, coastal day boat charters, off shore charters, all impact upon the marine environment.

4 http://www.cep.unep.org/law/cartnut.html - retrieved 15 March 20085 http://www.unep.org/dewa/giwa/areas/reports/r4/causal_chain_analysis_giwa_r4.pdf - Retrieved 15 March 2008.6 FAL Bulletin # 163, ECLAC  Issue No.163, (March 2000)

The Caribbean islands are situated along major shipping routes to the Panama Canal and vessels on international voyages frequently traverse the Caribbean Sea, particularly in the north. This is an area of intense cargo traffic. Each year more than 14,000 ships pass through the canal, carrying more than 205 million tons of cargo. By 2002 about 800,000 ships had used the canal altogether7. 14,011 vessels passed through in 2005, with a total capacity of 278.8 million tons, making an average of almost 40 vessels per day8. This canal has a success story, and is a key channel for international shipping and in September 2007, a major expansion project commenced. This infrastructural development is intended to meet the demands of the shipping industry. This means that vessels larger than the panamax – post-panamax will in the future traverse the Caribbean Sea enroute to the Panama Canal.

The presence of oil producing countries (Mexico, Columbia, Venezuela, United States and Trinidad & Tobago) and important ports for oil refining (Mexican shores, Cartagena in Columbia and San-Juan in Puerto Rico) make the waters of the Caribbean second in oil traffic to the Persian Gulf (Global International Water Assessment – Regional Assessment 4 Caribbean Islands).

Cruise vessels also use the Panama Canal and spend more time in the Caribbean Sea as the region is classified as the number-one destination for the cruise industry, and it is fast becoming a major yachting destination. In this regard the sea is the very resource (in an already limited resource base) that the region depends upon. Therefore the need for environmental policies associated with safeguarding this resource is well founded because of the potentially negative impact of unregulated and increasing shipping activity. This has been a major concern for policy makers in the region. This concern is mainly based on the anticipated increase likelihood of maritime disasters, such as oil spills, chemical pollutants etc.

The annual climatic conditions in the Caribbean Sea can increase the likelihood of maritime accidents in this region as ships can be affected by hurricanes and storms. The proximity of the Caribbean islands to each other can poses a major challenge should a maritime disaster occur as transboundary pollution can occur. The impact on humans as well as marine life and by extension the economies of many islands can be affected by one disaster. Regional contingency planning for response to disasters and search and rescue initiatives are relatively low on the list of priorities for the region.

Transporting of hazardous cargo, chemicals, oil etc, is constant and therefore the risk of polluting is high as a result of exposure to high vessel traffic in the Caribbean Sea, and noteworthy is the fact that most of these activities are unrelated to the region’s basic trade.

Disposal of ship generated waste is a grave cause for concern as it relates to merchant ships traffic in the region. The establishment of shore reception facilities for waste disposal at each port of call in the region poses some challenges as not every port to date has erected these facilities for garbage disposal.

7 (The Panama Canal. Global Perspectives. Retrieved on 2008-02-01)8 (Panama Canal Traffic — Fiscal Years 2002 – 2004 (PDF). Panama Canal Authority. Retrieved on 2008-02-03)

There are also concerns for the environmental impact of invasive species and algae from Ballast water on the marine environment as a result of increased tanker and container ship traffic.

Land based sources of marine pollution also affect the marine environment in the Caribbean as States encourage foreign direct investment into the Tourism industry. Investors in this industry for obvious reason have a preference for coastal properties for development. The marine environment is affected from construction up to completion and also at operational stages, where waste is still dumped into the sea.

The Caribbean Sea plays a vital role in regulating the climate and is the life line of the islands of the Caribbean. Therefore the impacts of shipping activities on climate change should not be ignored. Marine climate change impacts significantly on the environment and the goods and services provided in the form of coastal flooding, severity of tropical depressions, hurricanes and storms and the increase in the sizes of waves, and sea level rise. These affect shipping and ports in the Caribbean. Fish and fish farming as well as the availability of plankton will be affected by climate change. Fish is a major part of the diet of the people of the Caribbean; demand for seafood by the tourism industry is increasing therefore the viability of the fishing industry is vital to the economic survival of the region. Many Caribbean island economies are dependant on mono-industries and therefore the concerns surrounding pollution and climate change are of paramount importance to policy makers as their economies can become significantly affected by depleting resources and environmental damage.

Caribbean islands lack institutional capacity to effectively monitor vessel traffic in the region. Conventions like the Civil Liability Convention which aim to ensure that adequate compensation is available to persons who suffer oil pollution damage resulting from maritime casualties involving oil-carrying ships are consequently not implemented. The liability for damages is that of the owner of the ship from which the polluting oil escaped or was discharged.

Some Caribbean States lacked primary and secondary legislation for the proper exercise of flag, port and coastal State responsibilities. To this end, during the last few years, IMO and the Regional Maritime Adviser have provided considerable support for the preparation of a comprehensive package of model Acts and regulations, including also Codes for non-Convention sized ships, which form the vast majority of vessels operating in the Caribbean9.

Status of environmental protection policy in the Region

The Caribbean region has been assisted by the IMO in all fields of competence, especially in respect of Maritime safety and marine environment protection legislation and human resource development. Some islands have already drafted various pieces of legislation, such as the Marine Pollution Act, the Maritime Areas Act, as well as

9 Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (2008-2009)

the amendment or enactment of the Merchant Shipping Act and its regulations. There are also new regulations drafted with the aid of the IMO model legislation tools.

In September 2000, the number of Caribbean islands accession to IMO treaty instruments totalled 184. By February 2005, this figure had risen to 294, marking an increase of approximately 62%. As at December 2006 the number of acceptances was 310 reflecting an increase of 5.4% since February 2005. This is a significant increase over the six-year period, due in large measure to the advocacy work of the Regional Maritime Adviser, although there is still considerable variance on an individual basis, ranging from only six instruments ratified by one country to 33 instruments ratified by another. While the region’s leading flag States have accepted some, but not all, of the most important IMO Conventions, other countries with smaller registries have yet to ratify even major instruments such as SOLAS and MARPOL10.

In 1997, a proposal was drafted and the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the IMO for the designation of the Caribbean Sea as a ‘Special Area under the United Nation as it relates to sustainable development. It was intended that an all-encompassing approach to the management and sustainable development of the Caribbean Sea be adopted. This proposal has been on the agenda of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for 9 years and the Caribbean continues to agitate to gain recognition as a Special Area.

According to the Sustainable Development Unit of Caricom Secretariat, Caricom has recognised that it is necessary that the organisation have responsibility to ensure action in accordance with the UNGA Resolution 59/230 entitled “Promoting an Integrated Management Approach to the Caribbean Sea Area in the context of Sustainable Development”. In doing so, it is expected that the region pools its resources together in order to develop an integrated management approach that will only augur well for the region’s maritime industry.

In November 2007, five pollution prevention seminars were conducted on five Caribbean islands; this was a collaborative approach by the Regional Activity Centre/Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Information and training Centre for the Wider Caribbean Region and the M/V Freewind. These seminars were aimed at the encouraging ratification and implementation of Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships – MARPOL – that stipulates the prohibition of dumping of all ship generated waste into the Caribbean Sea. Additionally the Seminars focused on measures to facilitate the coming into force of the Special Area status under Annex V - of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships – MARPOL. However, according to IMO Regional Adviser for the Caribbean, Lieutenant Commander Roach “the majority of countries in the wider Caribbean region has not yet submitted information to the IMO on the status of their respective ship reception facilities”11. Hence the reason for the planned seminars last year, to allow the IMO to assess the status of these facilities and subsequently the activation of the Special Area status and its associated protection regime.

10 [SIC]11 http://www.allatsea.net/specificissueeditorial.php?featureid=1715 – 3 March 2008

To assist governments in the regulation of ships below convention size, several regional Codes for the safety of small ships have been developed over the last few years. In the Caribbean, the Caribbean Cargo Ship Safety Code was developed, and a draft Small Commercial Vessels Code (for ships under 24 metres) was developed by the IMO Regional Office for the Caribbean. This development is continuing with IMO actively promoting the preparation of regional rules, taking account of specific regional ship types12.

The governments of Caribbean are aware of their responsibility to inspect and control foreign vessels while within their jurisdiction to ensure compliance with international maritime safety and pollution standards. In light of this the Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control in the Caribbean Region (CMOU) was signed in Christchurch, Barbados on 9 February 1996.

The establishment of the CMOU is viewed as a vehicle for the development of Maritime Administrations in the Caribbean Region. There was also collaboration with IMO and the Port State Control Committee through the office of the Regional Maritime Adviser Lieutenant Commander Curtis Roach to ensure that member states accede to the key international Maritime conventions.

To date eleven Caribbean States have accepted the MOU namely – Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Netherlands Antilles and Trinidad and Tobago. The Secretariat is established in Barbados and the Caribbean Maritime Information Centre, in Curacao, Netherlands Antilles.

Caribbean countries are currently involved in several activities in order to fully carry out their obligations under the Memorandum. These include developing the necessary legislative regimes, ratifying the International Instruments identified in the Memorandum of Understanding, and establishing or strengthening as necessary their maritime administrations. With assistance from regional and international agencies, they will be able to effectively carry out the inspections required under the relevant international maritime instruments.

In 1999, Ministers with responsibility for Maritime transport met in Barbados to discuss the international development of Maritime in the region. A draft resolution was signed which aimed to ensure institutional strengthening, support for human resource development and the commitment to support this industry. This resolution was drawn up to commit signatories to, among other things, ensuring effective compliance and enforcement of International Maritime rules and standards in the region and support for the already established Maritime Administrations.

Member States of CARICOM have agreed to the inclusion of a transport policy in chapter 6 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas establishing the Caribbean Community, including the Caricom Single Market and Economy. The transport

12 (FAL Bulletin # 163, ECLAC  Issue No.163, March 2000 - http://www.eclac.cl/Transporte/noticias/bolfall/1/5091/fal163.htm (6 of 6)26/10/2007 8:12:52 AM)

policy seeks to provide safe, adequate and internationally competitive transport services for the development of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME)13. This means that safety of transport as cited in the policy includes environmental protection issues. Article 140 Section 5(c) reiterates this as it mandates member states to promote the development of Maritime Transport in the Community by the implementation of relevant international maritime instruments related to the safety of shipping and the prevention of vessel source pollution. Further, Article 141 of the Treaty seeks to define the role of member states in achieving international recognition for the Caribbean Sea as a Special Area. This policy will form the basis for the regulatory framework of the Maritime Transport Sector, which will only augur well for the development of commercial maritime activity in the region.

Conclusion:

In the region, Trinidad and Tobago is the Caribbean State with the most updated Environmental Legislation, the Environmental Management Act of 1995 (repealed and replaced in 2000 by the Environmental Management Act of 2000). This island has created vanguard institutions and procedures for the sustainable use of the country’s environmental assets14.

Currently the Environmental policies in the Caribbean occur in various manifestations, from “stand-alone” legislation, guidelines, codes, and references in economic and social policies. Additionally, the competitive international environment and all its occurrences impact upon environmental policies as issues of security, terrorism, and migration impact upon the success of environmental protection policies.

In order for the region to become effective in its fight to protect the environment, governments need to go beyond the policies and legislation on environmental protection. An integrated approach to environmental protection is required as the public and private stakeholders within the Tourism, Agricultural, and Transport and Energy sector are some of the key industries that often give rise to pollution, depletion to resources etc.

Policy makers should adopt a cross-sectoral approach to the development of environmental protection policies. This is not expected to be an easy exercise as it involves interaction with various Government departments, repealing and amending and developing legislation, rationalizing of policies and instruments, etc, in order to establish a comprehensive policy.

Professor Norman Girvan eloquently suggested two recommendations for the regional environmental protection policy:

Adoption of a common Environmental Regulatory Regime which protects, preserves, enhances and manages the productive potential of the natural

13 Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, establishing the Caribbean Community, including the Caricom Single Market and Economy, 2001.14 . (Dr. Winston Anderson, General Counsel, CARICOM 2005.

environment to ensure sustainable development, so that investors and other economic agents operate across the entire space of the CSME on the basis of the same policies and regulations that are publicly known and applied in a predictable and transparent manner.

Sponsoring the preparation and publication of a regular State of the CARICOM Environment reports, including the status of implementation of national laws and international commitments relating to the environment. Particular attention will be paid to priority issues in the Region such as the coastal and marine environment, forestry and watershed management, waste disposal and recycling, climate change impact analysis and adaptation, and natural disasters impact and management15.

In order for international law to become effective, the political will in terms of allocation of government resources is necessary to resolve environmental issues at the national and local levels. The environment must be seen as a priority and should be placed high on the agenda, particularly when making national investment decisions.

Finally, there is probably a degree of cultural indifference on the part of the peoples of the region in appreciating the impact of environmental degradation on future generations. It is therefore imperative that educational curricula be amended to address that indifference, failing which the above measures may not be as effective.

15 (Norman Girvan – Towards a Single Economy and a Single Development Vision, October, 2006).