DoE director continues to fight misinformation
(CNS): The director of the Department of Environment is continuing to correct misinformed critics of the DoE and the National Conservation Council who accuse them of delaying development. Gina Ebanks-Petrie has said, again, that the issues relating to planning delays are a result of the Central Planning Authority’s inaccurate interpretation of the National Conservation Law and the guidelines issued by the DoE, and the board is adding unnecessary steps to the process, which causes applications to be adjourned.
Speaking by phone to Sandy Hill, the host of Cayman Marl Road’s morning online talk show, on Monday, Ebanks-Petrie said that some “very curious practices” had been revealed in the minutes of the CPA meetings and in the accounts given to the DoE by applicants about the advice they must seek for developments that pose a threat to the environment.
“There is definitely a process issue that is being made very difficult by the insistence that the CPA do these multi-step consultations and adjourn applications at each step,” she said, noting that many of the steps they are taking are not required, as made clear in the guidance notes. She said there were “faster paths to getting the advice” from the DoE.
Ebanks-Petrie said she and her team had met with the CPA, and afterwards had believed that the process had been agreed. Instead, the CPA members are continuing to adjourn applications based on their misunderstanding of the process, she said. The problem is that neither the DoE nor the NCC can make them stop doing this, even though there is no reasonable explanation for the actions they are taking, she said.
She noted that there has been a considerable amount of misinformation circulating about the conservation law since it was first implemented more than a decade ago, and this has not stopped. The issues being raised now by its critics are the same ones that were raised before the law was even passed.
People have been uncomfortable with the insertion of conservation legislation into the planning process, Ebanks-Petrie told Hill, but the CPA must follow many other laws that require other government agencies to advise on, for example, fire regulations and waste-water treatment. In all of these cases, the CPA is required to adopt those recommendations, but for some reason, the laws relating to the environment seem to have “created a big problem”, she noted.
However, taking the environment into account at the planning stage is important because this forms the basis of the concept of sustainability to ensure that all implications are taken on board at the same time and all given the same weight. Ebanks-Petrie said the goal of the conservation legislation is to protect species and habitats that sustain our way and quality of life.
She rejected the idea that the conservation law or the processes involved have caused a decrease in development, and invited people to look around and ask themselves if it looked like it had slowed down. Since the law was passed, developers have been required to undertake an environmental impact assessment for only around 1% of projects — just four private sector projects and five government projects, including the cruise berthing project, which has since been paused.
The public can visit the DoE website and see all of the EIAs that have been done or are about to be done, Ebanks-Petrie said, maintaining that criticisms of the law “do not square with the facts”.
The DoE does not approve or reject any planning applications but can only give recommendations, she explained, and there are only very limited and narrow circumstances — when a protected area is at direct risk — where the NCC can direct planning not to approve a project. For most planning applications, the DoE gives only recommendations for conditions of approval, many of which are ignored.
The department has no power at all to do anything about the CPA’s approvals that don’t include any of the DoE’s recommendations, which often would not only preserve important habitats but also help landowners protect their property from flooding. Many of the recommendations, if adopted, would also retain native and endemic flora around built structures, making it easier and cheaper to maintain and helping to preserve the dwindling biodiversity.
Ebanks-Petrie said there was always more that could be done to protect the environment in conservation legislation, but the Cayman Islands has a law that the people and politicians were comfortable with at the time it was passed.
However, she noted that there are other issues at play, not least the absence of modern planning legislation and a national development plan.
“If our law was working in tandem with proper development and planning legislation and processes, I think we could achieve quite a lot. Unfortunately, that isn’t what is happening. We don’t appear to be able to work cooperatively with the CPA on these environmental matters. It does seem very adversarial from where we sit,” she said.
“A lot of what happens… that people find so egregious is because we don’t have proper development and planning legislation, and we don’t have a development plan that is guiding the CPA.” She said the plan should reflect the vision of the entire country that everyone wants to see, noting that there is no development plan at all for the Sister Islands and a very outdated one on Grand Cayman.
It has been clear for some time that the misinformation and criticism of the NCC are coming from the development lobby, which has been able to pressure politicians, and there are too many wealthy landowners who don’t want the broader public to influence any future development plan to include restrictions like much deeper setbacks on the coast and a managed retreat for structures built too close to the shore.
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Category: development, Land Habitat, Local News, Science & Nature
Misinformation, Disinformation and Mal-Information.
✅Disinformation is information that is false, and the person who is disseminating it knows it is false. It is a deliberate, intentional lie, and points to people being actively disinformed by malicious actors
✅Misinformation is information that is false, but the person who is disseminating it believes that it is true. Misinformation can be as innocuous as posting incorrect information. It’s typically a user error, benefiting no one. It could be someone posting “2 + 2 = 5”; it is false but has no clear intent to harm any person or group.
✅Mal-information is information that is based on reality but is used to inflict harm on a person, organisation or country
EIAs are important, not just to look at roads, but in the case of the EWA, to save lives. By following the process the NRA is making sure sustainable concepts are incorporated to ensure a resilient future for the people. EIAs consider the environmental and socio-economic implications of projects. This is the information needed to help people understand what needs to be undertaken to achieve the right balance and in our case, these needs are safely reflected in just 1% of the planning approvals since the National Conservation Act was enacted.
Can the DOE please check the environmental impact of all the Heavy Equipment, Trucks and Trailers getting fixed on the “residential” Island west of Harbour House Marina?
Maybe they could do something useful, like tackle illegal dumping in Barkers?
It is past time for the CPA to be permanently disbanded and a completely different mechanism implemented in order to ensure that the interests of the people and the natural environment of these islands are protected. The CPA does not represent the interests of the vast majority of Caymanians.
At least if there is a pathway to progress, JuJu will have it paved.
😂
Except for Little Cayman,
JuJu don’t know we have roads too, no paving. But we getting plenty of promises.
The environmental messages are simple and mostly common sense.
The problem now is that government has hundreds of paid communicators who don’t even know how to send a proper email, never mind inform the public and sway opinions.
why does the DOE have a plan where environmental sensitive areas are. Therefore before you buy land you should know where the environmental sensitive areas are so you don’t buy. The Doe needs to show the people where these areas are on the map so they don’t waste their money.
Dear Gina why are you not Premier? Our environment needs you, our people needs you, your county needs you! Thank you for your service thus far!!!
We had Wayne, who is an excellent advocate fir the environment, and you see what happened to him – Julianna, Kenneth and Dwayne kicked him out of the group
Cayman is a failure if we can’t value the environment.
Ok, 8:19, so it’s a failure then. Done and dusted.
Fights misinformation by appearing on Cayman Marl Road. That my friends, is the very definition of an oxymoron.
Oxymorons may seem illogical at first, but in context they usually make sense.
Gina is just fighting misinformation with the tools at her disposal. Keep up the fight, Gina, you’re a star
There’s only ever going to be one winner here. I’ll give you a hint, it won’t be Gina.
It’s not about Gina winning. It’s about us all winning. It’s about future generations having a good country to live in, a beach to enjoy, birds to see, adequate rainfall, etc.
Let’s see…
1. Future generations having a good country to live in… That has been passed by generational Caymanians selling out their property.
2. A beach to enjoy… maybe still possible, but doubtful as generational Caymanians have sold most of the beach to greedy developers who ‘do what they do – DEVELOPE.”
3. Birds to see… Cayman has long ago lost any true interest in protecting it’s indigenous gems.
4. Adequate rainfall… An interesting hope which indicates your poor information – rainfall is NOT in any respect a variable that Caymanians can influence in the short/long term.
I suspect the OP concurs and is just pointing to the inevitable.
A star indeed! Years of abuse by her very own. The fortitude Gina shows is commendable
Might want to check in with Wayne as to how that ended up working out for him.
Misinformation or not, there exists a real fear that the NCC has the power, yes power, to use “the environment “ as the reason to refuse, delay and bring down any application…..because they can .
4:18 True say and a very sad state of affairs indeed
True?
So we’ve moved from ‘the law WILL stop development’ to – the law has not stopped or even slowed down development, but it MIGHT, so we must scrap the law. – yeah, right. Your ‘concern’ is about as selfless as fish complaining that hooks are sharp and people using them might get hurt.
So it hasn’t happened, but it could happen, you think, so we must scrap the one little bit of environmental protection we have.
What is it the kids say? Tell me you’re a developer without saying it?
Misinformation or not, there exists a real fear that imported cars will result in local deaths … because it does.
We must therefore stop importing cars.
Logic is fun.
Misinformation is not.
4:18 pm You obviously haven’t read, much less understand, the National Conservation Act. XXXX the NCC does NOT have the power to refuse, delay or bring down “ANY” development. XXXX, the NCC only has the decision-making authority where the development affects a protected area or critical habitat of a protected species.
CNS: I’ve XX’d out the lies. The rest is exactly what the DoE is saying. I’m guessing you’re trying to pretend otherwise due to personal animosity.
We presently have lots of evidence of the results of ignoring past environmental advice. The largest of which is the erosion of southern SMB and the expectation, by developers, for our tax funds to be used to correct it.
CPA don’t be naive. Otherwise our grandchildren will NOT recall you with any admiration.
They are not worried about their grandchildren or anyone’s grandchildren.
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6:24-26
Thank you, Gina, for your continued hard work and leadership to ensure environmental concerns are considered.
Agreed. Keep up the good work, Gina!
It might be more accurate to describe what the development cartel and the minions they control on government boards as ‘orchestrated disinformation’ rather than benign ‘misinformation’.
Ju-Ju and her right hand man Jon-Jon will soon get rid of this environment department.
JonJon will be riding his donkey over burning coals looking for the gold star. But the bible won’t save JuJu if she removes the guardians of the environment and gives away God’s treasures.
Donkeys are better for the environment than motor vehicles.
Discuss
“There is definitely a process issue that is being made very difficult by the insistence that the CPA do these multi-step consultations and adjourn applications at each step,” she said, noting that many of the steps they are taking are not required, as made clear in the guidance notes. She said there were “faster paths to getting the advice” from the DoE”
There seems to be a bit of a difference between how DoE/NCC/Ms Ebanks-Petrie wants the process to work (what ‘steps’ are taken, what ‘paths’ are followed) and what was ruled in the CICA judgement based on legal interpretation (by 3 Justices) of the National Conservation Act. The judgement was clear on what procedure the CPA must follow and did not simply line out a “theoretical” process.
Ohg, really, pray tell, do expound more. What are the specific process steps the CPA is following?
Enquiring minds want to know.
The steps were spelled out in the appeal judgment which is a public document. If you’re not capable of reading it, I’m reluctant to waste any time breaking it down for you. Keep reading the opinion pieces, there’s only one side to every story right?
5:37 pm No the steps were NOT spelled out in the judgment.
So, you can’t say what specific steps the CPA is following either, good, got it. No probelms here folks.
Still waiting for the second side to provide specifics instead of innuendo trying to sow doubt.
I admire her. Successive governments dismiss her recommendations and bend over backwards to facilitate development, whether WE want it or not. She has been their scapegoat for years but acts eloquently and never gives up the fight.
Totally agree with this comment and also Nautical-one345!
Thank you Miss Gina and your team for your unwavering commitment to protect our environment.
Audience, when you hear criticism for the DoE blocking and delaying remember to fact check: “Since the law was passed, developers have been required to undertake an environmental impact assessment for only around 1% of projects.”
Conscientious developers should welcome the good advice and recommendations of the NCC/DoE because they will end up with a better long-term sustainable product. Otherwise, Caymanians should reject it and the NCC/DoE are the ones acting in the best interest of the majority – the majority being the population who appreciate a healthy environment and all the benefits it gives us.
all the negativity towards the DOE is the information given out by Central Planning. They are telling applicants that they are waiting for DOE. The DOE is turning around and blaming Planning. It is rather pathetic how two government entities are squabbling in the public in an attempt to flex their power. That is all these people on these boards are doing. They are so irrelevant in the grand scheme of things they need to show some sort of dominance to make themselves feel better, it is pathetic. Perhaps create one board, where the people on the board represent planning, DOE and the NCC, that way all the issues are hashed out in one meeting rather than the meeting with planning, then meet with DOE, and wait for their report to go to planning to look over then send back to DOE to sign a piece of paper to go back to planning to wait for a month to get the minutes up to find out if planning has had an opportunity to discuss, but cant do anything because the minutes have not been uploaded. what a joke
This board you want to create already exists. It’s called the NCC. Please look at the members of the NCC, the NCC is made of up government bodies and cabinet appointed members.
The NCC should have the director of planning as a member, but instead planning sends a “representative” instead.
then why does planning blame NCC for issues if they are on that board?
That is a very good question. Perhaps Planning will answer it?
How often does the NCC meet to review applications?
The DoE have publicly said, IIRC, that they meet weekly to review applications so that simple ones like a person’s house in a subdivision don’t have to go to the NCC, just the occasional big ones like EIAs. Sounds pretty efficient. Why don’t CPA do it that way?
5:39 The NCC does NOT meet to review applications. The DOE’s “technical advisory team” meets and acts on behalf of the NCC and sends comments to Planning. The NCC itself only meets a couple of times a year to ratify whatever Gina tells them.
Per the NCA and as confirmed by the recent Court of Appeal ruling, the Council has lawfully delegated authority to the Director to undertake consultations with other government entities and provide environmental reviews because the DoE are the technical experts.
As has been explained many times, in practice Director Ebanks-Petrie relies on a team of at least 6 persons with relevant scientific or technical expertise (varying depending on the type of assessment) meeting every week as the DoE’s Technical Review Committee to assess applications and provide written responses.
In accordance with the delegation, the Council receives regular updates on all applications or other consultations carried out and is able to ask any questions of the Director and her technical team at any time. The written updates also form part of the documentation for the NCC’s quarterly meetings that is publicly available on the NCC’s website and social media platforms.
They would still be a small voice always getting outvoted.
That’s how democracy works.