[Coral-List] linear parks, coastal zone management and conservation of coastal areas

[RainbowWarriorsInternational]

Dear all,

The Government of Aruba is planning to landscape the entire western coast with what it is calling "The Longest Linear Park of the Caribbean" from the Bushiri hotel next to the cruise terminal all the way up to the Arashi area near the lighthouse.

We would like to know if there are any reports out there on coastal zone management and linear parks, trails, bike trails etc. running alongside beaches and their impacts on coral reefs, wetlands, mangrove areas, sea grass beds, turtle breeding areas and the negative impacts on hatching turtles and other wildlife.

We would also like to know of studies and guidelines for mitigation of adverse impacts on flood plains, watersheds etc.

The linear park which will stretch for almost ten miles along the entire coast will entail, running parallel to each other pedestrian walks, bike trails, parking spaces, commercial corridors with kiosks, public toilets and greenery.

During our visit to the IUCN office in DC in 2004 we discussed this megalomaniacal plan and it was made clear to us that such a long park would seriously disrupt ecosystem services, and cause damage to wildlife, habitats and potential serious damage to properties in times of flooding.

Besides the Federal Coastal Zone Management Act is there any other state of federal legislation or guidelines in the USA on the subject?

Rumour has it that a US firm will be designing the linear park hence the need to research US regulations and reports.

The Government of Aruba is planing to start the creation of the park without proper environmental impact assessments in violation of the Cartagena Convention and its SPAW and LBS Protocols.

And worst of all the issue is compounded by the fact that no baseline studies and surveys of the coastal and marine ecosystems exist for any stretch of coast in Aruba

Milton Ponson, President
Rainbow Warriors Core Foundation
(Rainbow Warriors International) Tel. +297 568 5908
PO Box 1154, Oranjestad 
Aruba, Dutch Caribbean 
Email: southern_caribbean at yahoo.com    http://www.rainbowwarriors.net

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