By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A GROUP of concerned residents is planning to march on Wednesday to protest suspected deforestation of the former Perpall Tract Wellfield located in western New Providence.

Event organiser Terry Miller told The Tribune yesterday that the march will begin on Saunders Beach Park at 11am Wednesday, adding all are welcomed to participate.

Mr Miller, who is also the CEO of Earth Village, said the upcoming demonstration is being held to protest the deforestation of the Perpall Tract Wellfield, land consisting of 212 acres that was secured by the government in the late 1930s to provide water to the city of Nassau.

He said destruction of the area has threatened the country’s natural resources and conceded he will not stop fighting until the government intervenes.

Mr Miller and a small group also held up signs on Saturday to protest the issue near Saunders Beach.

“We’re going to march on Wednesday,” the environmentalist told this newspaper yesterday. “We’re trying to make the public aware of the destruction of a large portion of the Perpall Tract Wellfield which has been going on sometime, but which has accelerated over the last several months.

“It looks like scores of acres are now being ripped up and they are building a subdivision on public property… because as far as I know and in speaking with the minister of the environment, they were not legally doing this.

“There were no applications to remove the protected trees that were ripped down in the forest and when we reported them in 2017, the Department of Physical Planning said the two houses (that) they built on the property were illegally built.

“So we are marching against and protesting the deforestation of that natural forest and whatever legal authorisation and we don’t think he has any authorisation because so far the government has not given us any indication that there was legal authorisation so whether it is or not, it has to stop.

“Because at a time like this, when (we are) among some of the most vulnerable nations in the world as a small island developing state, we’re vulnerable to global warming, climate change and we’re going all around the world, pleading to developing countries to save the forest and to save our environment,” he also said.

The planned demonstration comes weeks after Mr Miller sounded the alarm over the issue during a press conference held this month.

At the time, Mr Miller told reporters he had consulted a lawyer to see if they can sue the Ministry of Environment to “make them do their job” and stop the reported action.

When contacted about the complaints earlier this month, Minister of Environment Vaughn Miller told The Tribune he was not certain what had happened in the area, but said he was told the property was taken by the government under eminent domain.

He insisted his ministry will not stand idly by and watch the land be destroyed.

Yesterday, Terry Miller said he heard similar sentiments from the minister earlier this year, but added nothing has been done by the government to date.

“This minister of environment promised me in early February that he was going to put a stop (to) it because he had so many things on his agenda but I’ve heard nothing. I’ve called his office several times, but I couldn’t reach him anymore,” he said.