From:TheBahamasWeekly.com
"Bahamas Dropped from Ethical Traveler Destination List for ‘Grim Environmental Record’"
By Save the Bays
Dec 18, 2014 - 4:22:55 PM
The
same day the United States announced it would ease restrictions for
Americans traveling to Cuba, the country’s tourism industry was dealt a
second blow when The Bahamas was
removed from the Ethical Traveller list for what authors described as
its “grim environmental record.”
The Bahamas was one of three countries dropped from the list aimed at
directing travelers with a social conscience to leverage their economic
power by supporting developing destinations deemed ethical.
“Of note,” said the article, “Latvia, Barbados and the Bahamas lost
their spots this year. While Latvia was disqualified as it’s now
considered a developed nation, Barbados was removed for failing to show
progress in areas of human rights, particularly human
trafficking, police brutality and discrimination against its LGBT
citizens. The Bahamas was also dropped for its grim environmental
record, including the ongoing construction of captive dolphin
facilities.”
The list marrying largely exotic locations with social responsibility was widely circulated online
Wednesday
and drew the attention of Save The Bays, the environmental advocacy
organization that has been pushing for environmental protection
legislation and
an end to unregulated development.
“We have been working tirelessly through the courts, the public and with
many of our environmental advocacy partners to bring attention to the
importance of preserving the environment that makes this beautiful
country what it is -- the coral reefs, the sparkling
turquoise waters, the wetlands, bays, the culture, the people’s way of
life,” said Romi Ferreira, a director of the association that has set
records in NGO social media following with 17,000 Facebook friends.
“As unfortunate as it is that the continuing disregard for the
environment has drawn the attention of a respected publication, we hope
that being dropped by Ethical Traveller will serve as a wake-up call for
those who continue to allow unregulated development
and development that trashes our treasures.”
The magazine, which suggests boycotting destinations it considers
unethical, points specifically to penned captive dolphin facilities in
The Bahamas. Ironically, a penned dolphin facility at Blackbeard’s Cay
off Cable Beach was just ordered closed by the courts
following a case brought by reEarth with the Save The Bays’ legal team
presenting evidence that the excursion intended for passengers of
Carnival Cruise Lines was built without the required permits.
That case was one of several being brought by the organization that is
also actively seeking freedom of information legislation, an
environmental protection act and accountability for oil spills and
pollution. Its online petition at
www.savethebays.bs has garnered more than 6,000 signatures and hard copies of the petition hundreds more.
“We have been attempting to alert our government with respect to the
significance of maintaining environmental credibility,” said Save The
Bays education director Joseph Darville. “Now the lack of appreciation
for the conservation of our beautiful environment
has come home to haunt us. When Ethical Traveler rules The Bahamas a
prime example of ‘a grim environmental record,’ they need look no
further than what happened in Bimini with the destruction of
world-famous dive sites for a ferry delivering people to a casino
owned by a foreign company.”
Ethical Traveler tells readers that its decisions are based on visits
and it selects the destinations felt to be doing “the best job of
promoting human rights, preserving the environment and supporting social
welfare” so travelers are satisfied their dollars
are “supporting economies that are on the right track. By visiting
these countries, we can use our economic leverage to reward good works
and support best practices,” it says. Eight of the 10 countries that
made the 2015 list for most ethical travel destinations
were islands. The 10 included Cabo Verde, Chile, Dominica, Lithuania,
Mauritius, Palau, Samoa, Tonga, Uruguay and Vanuatu.
The article can be viewed at www.ethicaltraveller.org.
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