So Difficult To Determine The Truth Of Anything The Government Says Anymore
The Barbados government says it will turn a 254 acre Zone 1 area in Waterford, St. Michael into a “National Botanical Garden” to turn the water catchment area into a tourist attraction.
Hmmmmmm. Maybe. I guess. If it is real.
What is the budget? When is it scheduled?
And, if this is a real project and not some election promise, the question is (of course): who has already cheaply secured or bought up all the land around project because they had the inside track on this development?
As the Nation News says, “…a botanical garden which would not only protect the aquifers but bring environmental and economic value to the area.” (Nation News story link here)
“bring economic value to the area.” Yes, indeed.
So again, we ask… When was this plan first publicly announced, and are there any suspect land purchase offers or transfers in the adjacent areas that predate the announcement?
We all know how tings be ’round hey!
The Government’s Problem With Graeme Hall National Park
In Graeme Hall – an area the is arguably even more at risk than Waterford – the government has behaved far differently than it pretends to behave in promising to create the botanical garden.
Prime Minister Arthur already approved the building of the Caribbean Splash Waterpark in the sensitive Graeme Hall watershed. Prime Minister Arthur turned down an offer of land for the Graeme Hall National Park.
Sanctuary owner Peter Allard offered to donate the majority of the sanctuary lands to the people of Barbados as part of a National Park, but the government won’t have any part of that. A National Park would mean that the government piggies couldn’t sell off pieces of land to their friends to build condos on.
The Prime Minister didn’t even have the courtesy to reply to Mr. Allard’s offer, so unsurprisingly Allard has put the sanctuary up for sale.
The loser in all this is not Mr. Allard or even the folks who support the formation of the Graeme Hall National Park. The losers are our children and generations to come who will enjoy the Owen Arthur legacy of high rise condos, pavement and decades of crushing national debt for which Barbados received little if any value and benefit.
If Owen Arthur would create a national park at Graeme Hall I wouldn’t disagree if it were called “Arthur National Park”. I’d bite my tongue and applaud.
At least then there would be one positive legacy for a man who could have done so much with 13 years of majority government, but in the end only squandered my children’s future and natural heritage.
photo: Area of Graeme Hall National Park. Under Owen Arthur, the green will disappear.
14 Comments
October 9, 2007 at 9:26 pm
Come lately election balloon. Definitely.
We already have a national botanical garden.
Luckily, it’s privately run.
It’s called Andromeda Garden.
We also have Flower Forest and Orchid World., and so we have THREE ‘national’ botanical gardens,
luckily all three of them privately,and therefore properly run.
We also have an Arboreal Park, my dear!
although this govern-mentally-run “park”
doubles as an overflow-carpark for the equally-well-run QEH! – does anyone realize this?
Come lately election balloon, without a doubt.
October 9, 2007 at 11:59 pm
Day 1.
Barbados Free Press hides story about Shirley Linton being a drug mule and needing Doniya to save her from prison.
If this is the national response and using the precedence set by Marsha Coward in todays Court pages. She will get away scotch free
October 10, 2007 at 12:45 am
Must be election coming, National Art Gallery ‘coming to a place near you’ soon!!
October 10, 2007 at 2:32 am
Extract from 2003 BLP manifesto
A NATIONAL BOTANICAL GARDEN
The lush land of Waterford, St. Michael will be developed into a National Botanical Garden — a multiuse facility containing landscapes, waterscapes, plants indigenous to Barbados and the Caribbean
October 10, 2007 at 2:34 am
BFP can you not accept that the BLP would have such a plan in their manifesto.
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BFP Comments
Sure, we can accept that. So they are going to use the same hollow election promise that they used four or five years ago. Sure. We get it!
We still want to know who owns the surrounding land and when it was bought though. We’re on to their tricks!
October 10, 2007 at 2:44 am
The over 6,000 citizens in favour of Graeme Hall National Park are meaningless to the BLP.
This is just another resurrected Botannical Garden red herring by a party ignoring the wishes of its people and reacting like petulant school children
instead of responsive leaders.
October 10, 2007 at 10:46 am
I heard about this plan for a botanical garden in Waterford some time ago and I thought it was a very good idea.
Excellent points ref G. Hall issue.
October 10, 2007 at 1:51 pm
I believe it would be a tragic mistake if the proposed Waterford Botanical Gardens were not incorporated into a National Graeme Hall Park.
And YES! 6,000 signatures supporting a GHN Park do matter, especially at election times.
Its time to do the right thing for a change.
October 10, 2007 at 4:20 pm
anon
What did the manifesto say about the ABC highway?
Are they acting true to form?
October 11, 2007 at 2:39 pm
Will this be part of Beautify Barbados? Another “corporation” with staff and equipment paid for by the taxpayers and little or no accountability?
What is the DLP policy on this issue? Will they correct the ills or simply oppose as does all good H.M. oppositions and when they assume govt leave “well enough” alone, since it suits their agenda?
October 14, 2007 at 4:03 pm
BFP- You state that PM Arthur has already approved Caribbean Watersplash fun park in Graeme Hall.
When was this announced, or are you just going on Kerins’ crowing that his private audience with the PM has paid off?
October 25, 2007 at 5:32 pm
there were two cousins one was a b l p supporter ontil his death a few months who was also david friend and live in ny and a greedy person and there land to be straighten out in st lucy and the david simmons has allow it to drag on in the courts for years and up to know there has been no agreement he is not fair he is no good as long as you is his friend or a member of the barbados labour party you can do no wrong so as you can see as long as he is cj nothing will change should never being chief justice of barbados another crook like the prime minister
April 5, 2008 at 9:18 am
u did a very good research.keep that spirit up.i`m a student at Africa University in Zimbabwe and i`m studing in environmental science
April 5, 2008 at 9:25 am
waz up.ola ola.u did a nice research on these botanical gardens.keep up that same spirit