The group is very pleased that in spite of the extremely pressing demands of office and country, the Honourable Prime Minister took time to accommodate us shortly after his ascension to office and invited his Permanent Secretary, Ms. Lana McPhail who is knowledgeable about the functions of the Ministry to attend.

This meeting which was formally requested by us, was to make the Honourable Prime Minister aware of the role of the group which is to stimulate discussion and action about sustainable development in the environment.

The Honourable Prime Minister informed that there would be an immediate repeal of the Amendment to the National Parks and Protected Areas Act and that his government is committed to upgrading the level of competence of all Grenadians thus improving the quality and functions of all governmental and non-governmental bodies.

During the course of the meeting, a representative of Friends of the Earth, Mr. Joseph Antoine, presented a copy of the Manifesto, July 2008 of the Friends of the Earth to the Honourable Prime Minister.

The Citizens’ group stressed the following points:

            1.  The need for policies, plans and legislation to govern the use of the country’s natural resources and the protection of these resources. A Lands and Land Use Policy, zoning, and Marine and Coastal Zone Management are to be implemented immediately with the protection of mangroves being of paramount importance.

            2.  The need for the implementation and enforcement where these policies, plans and legislation exist. The need to enforce the requirement for the conduct of Environmental and Social Impact Assessments for all major governmental and non-governmental projects which must be conducted by an independent multidisciplinary team comprised of credible and competent persons. There must be public consultation as an integral part of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessments.

            3.  The need for the benefits versus costs of Real Estate Tourism and tourismvmega projects.

            4.  The need for the revitalization of the town of St. George’s. We note the lack of appreciation of the economic value of natural and historic heritage sites and the need to protect these areas.

In addition, the group stressed the following concerns:

            1.  Grenada is signatory to various conventions, treaties and declarations which provide a framework or guidelines for sustainable management of natural resources and the protection of the environment. We pointed out that the previous administration chose to ignore, or saw many, if not all, of these frameworks and guidelines as irrelevant. As a result, the many major development projects now on stream are doing severe damage to our lands, marine, historical, architectural, geological and cultural environment.

            2.  A very major concern is the composition, capacity and integrity of the Land Development Control Authority which is the Authority that is giving planning permission for ‘development’ projects.

            3.  The need to upgrade the capacity and composition of the Physical Planning Unit with staff of integrity and appropriate skill. There is also a need for vigilant supervision and monitoring of all physical development projects.

And finally the group stressed the importance and the need for forensic and environmental audits by credible and competent persons for all development projects so that damage assessments can be determined and remedied with immediate urgency. The core of expertise can be garnered from either the OECS or the United Nations.