Science & Nature
Jubilee tree gains lost in just one CPA meeting
(CNS): Local environmental activists are raising concerns that the goal to plant 1,400 trees in the Cayman Islands this year in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee is nothing more than a green-washing publicity stunt. Well over 1,400 trees were condemned to be removed at just one Central Planning Authority meeting this month after planning […]
Students’ Climate March aims to pull activists together
(CNS): Students from Protect Our Future are holding a Climate March on Friday around Government House on the West Bay Road to remind everyone that the existential threat from climate change has not gone away. They also want to pull together all the activist groups in Cayman into one event to show the government the […]
Campaign starts to get public behind habitat protection
(CNS): Local environmental activist group Sustainable Cayman has started a social media campaign to spread awareness about the National Conservation Council’s recent call for nominations for Protected Areas across the Cayman Islands. In a press release, the group said that they wanted to ensure that everyone knows about this opportunity and to encourage people to […]
Premier wants input on planning law review
(CNS): Premier Wayne Panton had no explanation, when asked on Friday, for why no one with experience or knowledge in the areas of sustainable development and climate change mitigation was appointed to the committee reviewing the planning legislation. However, Panton said he wants to see input from groups concerned about these issues or people with […]
Turtle nests hit hard by last year’s storms
(CNS): Endangered sea turtles face a number of serious threats to their existence, which now includes climate change. Already at risk from poaching, coastal development and human activity, especially lighting that disorients hatchlings, the turtles must now contend with rising summer temperatures, rising sea levels and increased storm activity, which undermine their nesting season.
Sharks taking refuge from humans in deep water
(CNS): Three Caribbean reef sharks were caught on camera at a depth of around 300 feet off the coast of West Bay, Grand Cayman, last week. Experts from the Department of Environment said the footage of the three healthy sharks, two female and one male, demonstrates that while they remain one of the dominant predators […]
Loggerhead turtles lay record number of nests
(CNS): 2021 has turned out to be a record-breaking year for the number of loggerhead turtle nests across all three Cayman Islands. When turtle nest monitoring began in 1998, no loggerhead nests were counted on any of the islands and scientists believed the numbers were too low to ever recover.
Protection of five wetland habitats approved
(CNS): A selected number of wetland areas across the Cayman Islands are to be placed under formal protection following Cabinet’s recent approval of National Conservation Council recommendations relating to five locations that are home to mangroves and other threatened habitats.
DoE opens bid on new approach to invasive iguana
(CNS) The Department of Environment (DoE) is hoping to find a new way to manage the invasive green iguanas and move away from the current bounty system, transitioning the current cull to a lower cost operation, given the reduced population. According to a bid recently opened on the government’s procurement website, this is envisioned as […]
Climate situation now dire, IPCC reports
(CNS): In the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, published Monday, scientists are warning that any further delay in concerted global action will miss the brief, rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a livable future for humanity. The new report stressed the urgency of immediate and more ambitious action to address […]
Mangrove destruction is existential threat to Cayman
The Cayman Islands Mangrove Rangers write: Despite laws protecting Cayman’s mangrove habitat and the proven utility of wetlands in mitigating climate change impacts, mangrove destruction continues at a dangerous pace. The Cayman Islands Mangrove Rangers are alarmed by the ongoing practice of speculative and premature land clearing, rubber-stamped by the Central Planning Authority (CPA), which […]
