Santiwah

T&T vulnerable to $b illegal wildlife trade | The Trinidad Guardian

via www.guardian.co.tt

Environment Minister
Anthony Ramnarine stated that the illegal trade in wildlife was third globally to drugs and arms trafficking. It was also stated that the illegal trade was given a value that exceeded US $30 billion. This is a very amazing fact and Trinidad looks like the ideal transshipment point for North American shipments.

This is not unlike the drug trade that makes use of easy access to the ports of Trinidad to get the illegal goods into the United States. This looks like there are many Trinidadians involved in the trade to make using Trinidad a viable transit point.

The Zoological Society of Trinidad and Tobago are doing their best to protect the local wildlife but the enforcement of the illegal trade in wildlife from South America has to be the responsibility of the government.

Already resources are stretched thinly in many areas. This will only be addressed when some international body points their fingers at the government thereby forcing them to take action.

We have to protect the wildlife and in so doing will be taking the initiative to protect ourselves and the future of the animals and birds for future generations to come.

Earthwatch: Trinidad’s Leatherback Sea Turtles - Earthwatch

 

Each night under swaying palms and bright tropical stars, your team will patrol sections of the beach with the staff and volunteers of Nature Seekers. In peak season, you may find as many as 150 sea turtles nesting each night. At every encounter, you’ll tag, measure, and weigh these turtles—which can grow as long as 2 meters/6.5 feet and weigh up to 900 kilograms/2000 lbs!--and collect other data crucial for local and worldwide conservation efforts. Since green and hawskbill turtles also nest in the area, you may record some data on them, as well.

via www.earthwatch.org

The leatherback sea turtles are protected in Trinidad and Tobago. On the east cost (Matura beach) there are volunteers who devote time to ensure that the poachers don't intrude on these fantastic creatures when they return to the land of their birth to lay their eggs.

Link to the Earthwatch Institute here to read the related article.

Bachac|Leaf Cutter Ant

The leaf cutter ant; They get their name from the way they cut leaves from trees, which they then haul back to their nest. They do not eat the leaves, but instead they use it as compost to grow a particular type of fungus that does not grow anywhere other than in leafcutter ant nests. The ants eat the fungus, and feed it to their young. The fungus is grown in football sized chambers inside the nest. There can be 300 or more of these chambers inside the nest, and all of the earthworks to build them might involve the removal of 18,000kg of earth during the lifetime of the nest.

via http://www.wiwords.com

I remember tending to our garden that was opposite our home and next to the rail line and having to deal with Bachacs. They literally had 'tracks' in the grass and were so industrious working all day. The ones with the really big heads had cutters that would remain connected to the partially cut leaves even when their head was detached from the body. They never bothered with anyone unlike the regular ants and the notorious red ants (very small but the sting/bite hurt like hell). The other ant that was similar in built but black in color was called tac tac and we knew to stay away from these guys. The Bachac could really put some hurt on the young tomato plants but we never really bothered about them.

Source:

http://www.amazing-trinidad-vacations.com/leaf-cutter-ant.html

http://www.wiwords.com/word/bachac

Let’s clean up—Kamla | The Trinidad Guardian

Volunteers and corporate citizens are joining hands with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar in a massive clean-up and beautification campaign to alleviate flooding across the country. Dubbed the C&B Movement, the drive was announced yesterday by Persad-Bissessar, as she toured her Siparia constituency. Since her appointment, several communities in Penal, Siparia, Debe and Barrackpore have been experiencing heavy flooding. In anticipation of more of the same, Persad-Bissessar said she has mobilised groups to assist with cleaning up rivers, drains and ravines. She explained that a Cabinet meeting was held and a call was made for corporate sponsorship for the project.

"It is amazing to see the number of citizens who are donating equipment, machinery and their own time to begin this clean up. “It is needed at this time because it will help with the flooding. It also places a lot more foot soldiers in communities and this will serve as a deterrent to fight crime,” Persad-Bissesar said. She added that her Government will also partner with the Defence Force and the police to arrest crime. She noted that as the rainy season continues, a lot of areas need to be cleaned. “The Minister of Works plus the engineering corps of the Defence Force as well as the Minister of Local Government will highlight the areas that are flooded and they will look at the plans and identify the patterns of flooding."

via guardian.co.tt

If the general public can respond and take the initiative with this cleaning campaign then the government machinery will not be stressed to meet the demands placed on it. In the end it is the citizens who will benefit form these endeavors. If the Prime Minister can motivate the people to become a part of the clean up process then kudos to her and her government. 

Of course there will be areas where heavy machinery will be needed to cleanup the streams and even rivers. The unimpeded flow of the water courses is imperative if we want to remedy the flooding woes that currently plague certain areas.  People must desist from dumping garbage upstream that eventually end up in the water courses and eventually cause blockages that result in flooding. 

Of course the clearing of the rivers and streams alone will not resolve all the flooding woes currently being experienced. Construction projects that have striped away the vegetation that once protected the land is gone leaving  exposed areas of land that simply washing away into the streams carrying a muddy mess that adds to the problem. The dry season has also caused problems on the Northern Range and together with the mindless 'raping' of the Northern range our flooding problems will continue unless we address these issues. 

Having said that we must congratulate the Prime Minister for her efforts - it is a start. If anyone can motivate the nation to act for an behalf of the nation it is Kamla Persad Bissessar. Let's cleanup the environment... Let's get the job done.