Devon Evans, Gleaner Writer
RUNAWAY BAY, St. Ann:
PRIME MINISTER P.J. Patterson has put to rest the concerns of environmentalists who have been raising objections to the building of a 1,918-room resort on lands at Pier Tree Bottom in Runaway Bay, St. Ann.
Speaking at the official ground-breaking ceremony for the project on Friday, Mr. Patterson said the developers were equally concerned about the preservation of the investsment in the area.
Mr. Patterson and the head of the Spanish-based Piñero Group took part in the ground-breaking ceremony for the US$200 million project, one of the largest tourism investments in recent years.
At least two groups of environ-mentalists, the Jamaica Environ-mental Trust and the Northern Jamaica Conservation Association, have been strongly opposed to the project and have even taken the matter to court. The groups are claiming the Pier Tree Bottom property is a natural habitat for rare birds, snakes and turtles and such a large resort property would damage the environment and destroy wildlife.
JUDICIAL REVIEW
In their action now pending in court, the groups are seeking a judicial review of the building plans for the project that were approved by the National Environment and Planning Agency. But in his address, Mr. Patterson said he was convinced that serious efforts were being made to preserve the wetlands and wildlife in the area.
"We have taken note of what you are going to do in terms of the UWI Marine Lab at Discovery Bay; we take note of the changes to the designs and locations of your buildings to keep the wetlands intact and we have no doubt that you are going to be very welcome partners to Jamaica," he added.
Meanwhile, project manager for the Piñero Group, Jesús Castellanos Ortega, also assured Jamaicans that the construction of the hotel to be known as The Bahía Princite Jamaica will not hurt the environment.
He said 18 acres of the 200-acre property have been reserved for the preservation of forest and wetlands and that there was no need for environmentalists to have any fear about any threat to wildlife.
