WESTERN BUREAU:
A US$8million initiative, the Ridge to Reef project, aimed at sustaining the island's watershed, and natural resource management, was officially set in motion this week.The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is plowing US$6m into the venture, while the Jamaican government is providing the remaining funds.
Addressing the launching ceremony, Horace Dalley, Minister of Land and Environment said the project will seek to correct the destruction of watersheds by encouraging sound environmental practices.
The five-year venture will target Jamaica's two largest watershed areas - the Great River watershed in western Jamaica and the Rio Grande watershed in the east.
Preparatory work on the project began in June last year when stakeholders in the Great River watershed first developed their vision for the next 10 years. However, activities under the programme is now expected to intensify over the next few months.
Maria Protz, participation and public awareness specialist with the Ridge to Reef project, says over the next three months some 23 communities in the Great River watershed will be carrying out environmental audits of their areas, and planning community programmes that are economically and environmentally feasible.
They will also be addressing compliance and enforcement issues. All the communities are to meet in a stakeholder meeting in February.
