With little or no objections from the public, eight more dolphins are expected to be imported into Anguilla from Tortola for Grupo Dolphin Discovery at Blowing Point.
At a public consultation at the Teacher’s Resource Centre on Monday evening, October 27, Permanent Secretary in the Minister of Home Affairs and Lands, Ms Aurjul Wilson, said that on September 3, 2014, the Ministry had received an application from Dolphin Discovery to import eight dolphins in addition to the eight already at Dolphin Discovery.
She stated that acting under the Beach Control Act, the Minister of Home Affairs and Lands, Mr Jerome Roberts, caused the above application to be published in the Official Gazette. The intention was to afford an opportunity for members of the public, having objections to the aplication, to make representations to the Minister within four weeks from the date of publication. The Permanent Secretary reported, however, that “to date the Ministry has received no objections to the application”.
At Monday’s public consultation, Ms Wilson told those in attendance: “Your input is essential so you are encouraged to voice your concerns. The Honourable Jerome Roberts will not make a presentation this evening. He is here to listen to your views and concerns which will be considered when determining whether to grant this application. On the other hand, representatives of the Dolphin Discovery will make a short presentation before we open the floor for questions and comments.”
The presentation, which included a video of the operations of the dolphin facility, was delivered by the General Manager, Mr Mario Abiarco, who was mainly assisted by Mr Alejandro Raygoza, one of the principals of the company. The information they provided included the need to expand the facility; the numbers of visitors per month and per year; the marketing of the facility on cruise lines serving neighbouring St Maarten with passengers visiting the dolphin facility in Anguilla; and the Government revenue and other benefits to Anguilla, including employees and taxi-drivers.
The views from the public were largely in support of the importation of the additional dolphins and the expansion of the facility, and there questions about its operation and the wellbeing of the dolphins.
The next step is for the operators of the dolphin facility to complete and submit an application form for a CITES Permit to import the additional dolphins. This will, of course, also require the granting of a licence by the Minister of Home Affairs and Lands. (CITIES is the acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.)
