Here’s an interesting article in the Green section of the Huffington Post talking about sand-mining eroding Caribbean beaches.
Among the hardest hit is Grenada, where officials are building a $1.2 million seawall to protect the 131-square-mile island. Large-scale sand thefts have exposed north-coast towns to rough seas, said Joseph Gilbert, the minister of works and environment.
On Grenada’s 13-square-mile Carriacou island, population 6,000, the beach is shrinking by 3 linear feet every year from illegal sand mining, Gilbert said.
Hmmm. *frowny face*
Hi there! YingYang here, live and direct from Grenada. I'm a thirtysomething, moderate-liberal, working single mother. I'm a web, TV & pop culture addict, and a passionate Caribbeanista.
Didn’t realize the problem was that extensive. Hope the powers that be can seriously implement effective measures. Thanks for sharing this.
This was picked up by many outlets around the world. But is local Grenada press publishing anything about it?
This reminds me of an article I saw somewhere about 500 tons of sand being illegally removed from a beach in Jamaica. (Maybe on Ruthibelle’s blog?) How does that HAPPEN without anyone noticing??
@Carlana & @Brewa: Last time I checked this wasn’t being reported in the local news – not surprising though given the nature of the local media. Sadly I don’t think that this would be surprising to many Grenadians because almost everyone is complicit in the sand mining. Average Joes (haha) building their houses KNOW exactly where the sand is coming from and they just choose not to care.
Although in the media’s defense I will say that within the last 2 months I have seen about 3 local news reports from Carriacou regarding the situation there and the apparent inability of their local “higher powers” to stop the mining. In one weekend some thieves decimated an entire inlet beach close to a cemetery and the issue only became a public outcry because a portion of the cemetery’s contents fell into the sea!
@maria: The report above reference some major sand heist in Jamaica; I’m sure that’s the one.
It is sad that we are plundering the very thing that makes our islands beautiful and enables us to enjoy ourselves. The same is happening here, with the latest being the 500 truck loads if sand that was removed from a beach!