Climate policy officially adopted by government

| 10/10/2024 | 45 Comments
View towards Royal Palms after the recent stormy weather

(CNS): Climate Resiliency Minister Katherine Ebanks-Wilks presented the long-awaited climate policy to parliament Wednesday. The document outlines a 26-year plan for the adaptation and mitigation measures necessary for the Cayman Islands to become climate-resilient.

Stressing the importance and significance of the policy, which has taken almost fifteen years for the government to adopt, Ebanks-Wilks said the region is already experiencing more intense rainfall events and tropical storms, putting communities and critical infrastructure at greater risk of flooding and damage.

“Warmer sea temperatures and longer periods of drought jeopardise the health and viability of valuable, limited natural resources, upon which our tourism, our food security, our livelihoods, and our quality of life depend,” she told her parliamentary colleagues in a short speech about the policy.

Although the policy was presented to the Cabinet more than a year ago, it has been languishing since Wayne Panton, the former climate resiliency minister and the driving force behind it, was ousted from the position of premier. While it’s still not clear why the policy was delayed for so long, it was finally approved last month.

The original draft document was written by scientists and went through the public consultation process last year. But before approving it, the Cabinet ministers, none of whom are scientists, made changes to the policy document, which CNS intends to scrutinize.

Ministry officials have said some of the alterations relate to adjusted timelines, and the mental health impacts of climate change have been included. However, some of the strategic actions have been reduced, consolidated or redefined. An area dealing with interwoven equity has been removed from the revised draft, but related strategic actions have been moved to other relevant focus areas.

The policy has three core goals: developing the processes and capacity for the government to take urgent climate action, for the country to become more resilient to climate change, and to achieve a low-carbon economy. All three goals will require an immense amount of work, given the failure of successive administrations to adopt any truly sustainable policies.

Ebanks-Wilks pointed out that the recent brush with Hurricane Beryl demonstrated how flooding and coastal erosion continue to pose serious risks to homes and businesses in the Cayman Islands.

“We know that increasingly warmer ocean waters contribute to the strength and intensity of hurricanes in our region,” she said. “While we cannot prevent these severe weather events, this policy enables us to take proactive steps to safeguard and support our people, environment and economy.

“The approval of this policy is testament to the incredible dedication of the ministry and its policy advisors. It is also important to note, however, that this policy is a strategic pathway for a more climate-resilient future for the benefit of us all, and the key to success is in collaboration.”

She explained that it provides a governance framework for climate action which includes cooperation and coordination across ministries and departments, the private and public sectors and civil society. “I look forward to seeing this policy make a real and positive change in the future outlook for all three Cayman Islands,” she said.

However, the ministry may find it challenging to ensure the participation of other government departments and the private sector, especially the development and construction industry, over the remaining months of this administration.

Obstacles to overcome include the planning department’s open hostility towards the National Conservation Council and the Department of Environment, the government’s efforts to gut the National Conservation Act, and developers’ inclination to do what they want regardless of the impact on the environment.

The recent flooding and rapidly worsening beach erosion after relatively benign storms this season are clear demonstrations of Cayman’s vulnerability and inadequate resiliency. One illustration of the enormity of the problem Cayman now faces is the mammoth task of moving the concrete structures from Seven Mile Beach, which are compounding the erosion and polluting the ocean along this famous stretch of coastline.

Ebanks-Wilks spoke about some “quick wins” that have been identified as short-term actions that can be delivered over the next five or six years. These include identifying climate-related financial opportunities and vulnerabilities, completing the Coastal Setback Reference Line reassessment, and implementing a National Sargassum Management Strategy.

The policy is mainly based on the research, consultation and public engagement that resulted in the Cayman Islands Climate Change Evidence Report 2022, now the most comprehensive reference document to date on the potential implications of climate change on the islands’ environment, society and economy.

Senior Policy Advisor Lisa Hurlston-McKenzie, who is not only part of the team that compiled the policy but will be heavily involved in its implementation, said that it had been crafted to reduce the impacts of extreme weather events on households and communities in the short and longer term.

“Work on an implementation plan with government and non-government partners to bring about these and other benefits will begin immediately,” she said.

Acting Chief Officer Troy Jacob said it was a notable achievement for the ministry, which is both new and small, to have delivered two approved national policies within this administration. The team also delivered the updated National Energy Policy earlier this year. “The ministry looks forward to working closely with government, private sector and non-governmental partners for the implementation of both national policies,” he said.

As she addressed her colleagues in parliament, Ebanks-Wilks, who has held the ministry for just under a year, said there was an urgent need to secure funding and resources to implement the policy.

“While the policy outlines that these costs will be, where possible, absorbed within the operational budgets of government ministries and portfolios, the policy also aims to establish a Climate Resiliency Fund, through legislation, to fund the timely implementation of this and future updates of the policy,” she added.

The minister had to point out to the MPs that climate change affects lives, not just the environment. “That is why the Climate Change Policy sets our strategies to support economic diversification, aiming to create sustainable livelihoods and make our economy more resilient to climate shocks,” she explained.

“By acting now, we are protecting both the financial services sector and the broader economy from climate-related risks. Specific areas such as resilient infrastructure and safeguarding the natural environment are key to protecting tourism and other critical sectors. By reducing climate risks, the policy aims to ensure the long-term sustainability of these industries,” she added.

See the minister’s full address and the redrafted policy in the CNS Library.


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Category: Climate Change, Policy, Politics, Science & Nature

Comments (45)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    What is the carbon footprint of The Dump?

    “Landfills are considered the third largest source of human-caused methane emissions in the U.S., responsible for 14.3% of methane in 2021 and emitting the equivalent to the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from nearly 23.1 million [‼️] gasoline-powered passenger vehicles driven for one year, according to the EPA. “
    https://carbonmapper.org/articles/studyfinds-landfill

    Cayman doesn’t have a landfill it has the Open Air Dump.

    Compared to a landfill, an open air dump has a significantly higher carbon footprint due to the uncontrolled release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, making open air dumps considerably worse for the environment in terms of greenhouse gas emissions; a well-managed landfill, while still emitting methane, captures and often utilizes some of this gas, resulting in a lower overall carbon footprint than an open air dump.

    Open air dumps release methane directly into the atmosphere with little to no capture.

    Open air dumps contribute more significantly to air pollution due to the open burning of waste and the release of volatile compounds, further increasing their carbon footprint.

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  2. Anonymous says:

    Great job CNS! Thank you.

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  3. Ironside says:

    It just may be too late, maybe, maybe not. We can’t afford to gamble on it, take corrective actions now to save what we can!!

    “What is the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on?” – Henry David Thoreau

  4. Anonymous says:

    Good to have this see the light of day. The Ministry is under staffed and under financed and they still got it done. Great to see a climate change policy being approved if nothing else!

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  5. Anonymous says:

    Does the actual Caymanians know what their politicians have signed up to they have given up their sovereignty to the rule of ESG.

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  6. Anonymous says:

    yet they allow dredging in sound for fill…ZZZZ….jokkers…lol

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  7. Anonymous says:

    no action of significance will come from this at all. But at least it’s a step forward (i think?)

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  8. Anonymous says:

    Are there any mirrors in the CIG building?

    If not, can we have some installed. These clowns need to know how they really look to everyone.

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  9. Anonymous says:

    Discussions on bringing sand in to replenish the beach. Given the current climate of stronger storms, may only be both a very short term solution that turns into a futile one.
    It was tried up in the US in a vulnerable location and the sand only lasted a very short time. I think on either Long Island or nearby Massachusetts .

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    • Anonymous says:

      They should pump the sand back up onto the beach like they do in other countries.

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      • Anonymous says:

        That’s why the water is murky and devoid of life in other countries. There are a lot of living creature off 7MB right now, but suck them through a dredge and it’s gone forever.

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      • Anonymous says:

        There are no surplus sand deposits there because of the drop off.

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  10. Anonymous says:

    Thank goodness we have a strong and wise leaders like Honorable O’Connor Connolly and Seymour who know how to deal with these type of things. Cayman is truly blessed!

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    • Anonymous says:

      CNS, can we have sarcasm guidance, please?

      I liked this, as it is obviously tongue in cheek, but now see everyone else disliked it, because they know it to be false.

      How do I go about voting up or down, to show my agreement with the sarcasm.

      We need a solution, for too long, sarcastic comments are misvoted. Do we need to type it in italics, or put a disclaimer at the beginning and/or end of the text?

      Help.

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      • Anonymous says:

        It’s actually much better this way. @6:31’s comment becomes even funnier with each down vote!

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  11. Anonymous says:

    I’m sorry but this, the exorbitant reckless spending, future projects, pay rises and blatant vote buying is politicians struggling to be relevant ahead of the elections, and nothing good will come of it. In fact it should all be illegal under elections law for at least 12 months before the elections. It happens every four years between which they do nothing meaningful and waste our money on whimsical projects to sustain their own futures and line pockets of friends and family from the public purse. I don’t trust this lot or the PPM to do the right thing for Cayman, it’s people and what remains of our fragile, once beautiful environment. Tsssskk….

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  12. Anonymous says:

    How many coastal developments have been approved since this Ministry staged their concern party on the Marriott beach because there was no legal way to refuse permission? if they were that concerned, they couldve put a moratorium on coastal (beach) development years ago.

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  13. Anonymous says:

    To those of you who believed that the environmental groups where holier then thou? They had a chance to buy 100 acres of the central swampland that in 2012 but didn’t. It was the first thing I did when my sister in law and myself offered it to them. National trust said they wanted it but had no money. The Dept of Environment was offered for 3 years and the same. We have an Environment fund, nothing, not a call or an email. So don’t hold your breath. The fluff is from the public who keep writing about it. It was land that will now be sold as cheaper lots to people who want to build on. I believe that it at least will help the young to buy cheaper land to build their family a house.

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  14. Anonymous says:

    This is all hot air and just in time for elections next year. Go take a look at water front or the back of Leguna Del Mar, yet approval to Al Ts project in Lower Valley, extension of the East West arterial road and now the piers. A bit too late.

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  15. Anonymous says:

    And yet another Plan joins the many Plans that were planned to be the remedy for all ills. All Plans were destined to stir up a little media coverage for a little while. Maybe gain a few “quick wins”, then fade into obscurity in a filing box.
    I have a Plan:
    How about we plan to plan to have no more damn plans until the plans we have planned in past planning are at least 66.7% implemented?
    Does this sound like a Plan?

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  16. Anonymous says:

    While SMB burns, the wafflers waffle.

    #standard

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  17. Anonymous says:

    pure waffle and hot air.
    there is no-one in cig or civil service with expertise or qualifications to tackle the issue
    if we can’t be honest and face these facts we will never be closer to a solution.

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    • Anonymous says:

      There is no issue to tackle in Cayman. We have an insignificant footprint, a dot in the ocean, which will make no difference whatsoever to global warming, climate change and other tree hugger buzzwords.
      Relax and enjoy Island living my friends.

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  18. Anonymous says:

    They’re so worried about carbon emissions, but no mention of carbon retention. Do you know what takes carbon out of the atmosphere and puts it back into the ground?? MANGROVES DO! But successive governments have all been hell bent on destroying the vital wetlands on this island.

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  19. Anonymous says:

    Hahahahaha!!!!!

    How does one adopt a climate policy whilst simultaneously demolishing anything green and cover it with concrete and tarmac??

    They really are a special bunch running this country. Absolute clown show! If the circus that visited the island needs some more clowns they should look no further than CIG!

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  20. Anonymous says:

    Sounds like a whole pile of nothing. I can almost guarantee government and the people of the Cayman Islands will somehow be footing the bill for the existing structures being washed away and all those about to be washed away over the next 5-10 years. I mean the lack of planning on this and the lack of execution points out the obvious, Caymans MP’s and their administrative arms made up of fancy “expert” expats now are educated fools.

    LTD Da Unboozler

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  21. Anonymous says:

    A National Sargassum Management Strategy is in the quick win category?

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  22. Anonymous says:

    Still waiting for delivery of protected serviced cycling corridors promised to public as NRA Road Plan policy and budgeted since 2015. That’s the easiest way to get hundreds of cars off the roads almost overnight.

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  23. Anonymous says:

    Who is tnis woman and should I know her?

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