19th September 2012
Dear Editor
DESTRUCTION OF ANGUILLA’S
BEACHES
I am writing this letter because of articles published in The Anguillian on 21st September, 2012, about the destruction of the beach at Shoal Bay east, where Gwen’s Reggae Grill is situated.
Whenever the sea is rough, sand is either added or taken away from one beach to another. That is nature. We can and must live with that. There is nothing we can do to prevent that from taking place. But deep within my mind, I honestly believe, beach erosion involves sand mining. With that said, I believe those persons who sand mine the eastern shores of Anguilla are responsible for the destruction of Shoal Bay’s beach.
While we relax on our porch, in our yard under a tree, or in our houses,Anguilla’s beaches are being raped of their beauty and protective clothing. Where do the sand miners leave for turtles to nest? Soon and very soon, we will have to boast and advertise our grey, pointy rocks and ask our tourists to walk with pieces of wood to sit on and hope that they would be able to balance their “seats” in order to sit. Pretty soon we would have to ask that they do not come barefooted as some of them do, because they would be unable to walk along “our pointy and sand-less beaches.”
Those in the Tourism Department, Department of Environment, Lands and Survey, RAPF, Government and Opposition Members ought to take this very serious. SAND MINING IS ILLEGAL, so why let them do it? It is a crime just like that of rape, murder and theft. That of which we boast and brag about is fast being destroyed and we sit back and let it happen. Take a ride to the eastern beaches and see why “OUR MOST BRAGGED ABOUT BEACH, SHOAL BAY,” is destroyed. Throughout that stretch of land that leads from Junks Hole to the light on Windward Point’s hill, there are road blocks and spots where the sand is dropped off inland – when it is taken from the beaches, – to be removed, sifted, given away or sold another time. Think of what will happen in times of storms. Tell me, what is BEACH EROSION? Tell me if what is happening at Shoal Bay isn’t as a result of SAND MINING, – the amount of sand already taken from the easterly beaches and continue to be taken. Why is it that nothing is being done about this? Is it because there are no hotels on these beaches? Do any of you know how many tourists frequent these beaches?
It seems to me that care is being given to the western end ofAnguillaall because it’s the tourism belt. For God sake, do something because something is doing us. Who knows which beach will be the next to look like that which was published on the front page of this same paper last week? Who knows? Will it be Cap Juluca, CuisinArt, Viceroy or Meads Bay beach in its entirety? What if any of them should start being destroyed like Shoal Bay east? It would pain of every living soul in Anguilla because tourism is our bread and butter. Therefore pay attention to the destruction of the beaches in Anguilla and, in particular, the beaches in Districts one and two.
Some months ago, articles and photos were published in this very newspaper about sand mining and about the destruction of the same Shoal Bay beach. I now see, thanks to The Anguillian, that Shoal Bay beach has deteriorated to a point where tourist can no longer relax like they used to. What is being done to solve this problem? People of Anguilla, there are a lot of issues that look small and simple but will drastically affect our tomorrows. We need to ban together and solve these issues as a unified community. Our focus is getting tourists to come to our shores. They are our main source of survival. Should our beaches be destroyed because of sand mining, there would be the blazing sun over our heads, no grape trees, no coconut trees, no trees at all on “our beaches” for shade – and there would be nothing left to attract anyone to our shores.
Let us therefore put our all into protecting our beaches, our little Anguilla and secure our today and our children’s tomorrow.
Anguillian Beach Lover
