By Desiree K Major-Corneille

In The Bahamas, environmental protection is often expressed through community initiatives—beach clean-ups, mangrove and tree planting, awareness campaigns, and marine conservation efforts. While such interventions reflect meaningful public commitment and civic engagement, they are not, on their own, sufficient to counter the scale and complexity of systemic environmental crime. From unauthorised dredging to illegal mining, wildlife poaching, and illegal dumping, these violations are neither incidental nor isolated. They are symptoms of deeper structural dysfunction: impunity, regulatory fragmentation, and institutional inertia.

Environmental crime, as defined by INTERPOL and the United Nations Environment Programme, encompasses a range of illegal activities involving natural resources, from illegal logging and fishing to trafficking in endangered species and unregulated pollution. Within a small island developing state (SIDS) context, these crimes undermine ecological and economic resilience and erode national stability. The Bahamas, with its archipelagic geography and natural-resource-dependent economy, is acutely vulnerable.

Enforcement is not a policy afterthought; it is the frontline of national resilience. It is the mechanism through which environmental laws gain meaning, boundaries are upheld, and natural assets are defended as critical infrastructure. Without it, protected areas become paper promises, and ecosystems that sustain our tourism, fisheries, and coastal protection unravel. Where enforcement fails, illegal activity thrives, public trust erodes, and the very foundations of our economy, safety, and sovereignty begin to collapse.

Enforcement as deterrence and prevention

Environmental enforcement refers to the suite of legal, regulatory, investigative, and operational actions taken to ensure compliance with environmental laws. As a discipline in its own right, it demands professional capacity, legal clarity, institutional authority, and public cooperation. Crucially, it is not solely punitive. Effective enforcement fosters deterrence, shapes behavioral norms, and signals the seriousness with which a society defends its natural heritage.

In The Bahamas, there is a shift toward more deliberate and coordinated enforcement. This initiative reflects the growing recognition that fragmented institutional mandates, insufficient deterrents, and ad hoc operations have not met the scale or sophistication of the threats faced.

Toward intelligence-led environmental governance

Traditional enforcement methods tend to be reactive—mobilised only after damage has occurred. This must evolve. Intelligence-led enforcement (ILE), adapted from law enforcement models, emphasises proactive decision-making through the use of data analytics, risk profiling, and environmental intelligence. It facilitates the identification of hotspots, trafficking patterns, and systemic vulnerabilities, allowing resources to be directed where they are most needed.

The integration of geospatial monitoring, remote sensing technologies, and field intelligence collection is critical to this approach. These tools must be institutionalised within enforcement operations, not treated as external or occasional support.

Legal infrastructure and institutional capacity

An effective enforcement regime depends on a clear legal framework and institutions with the requisite authority, training, and resources to act. In The Bahamas, while environmental statutes exist, enforcement capacity is often constrained by limited personnel, outdated legal instruments, and jurisdictional ambiguity. For enforcement to succeed, officers must be empowered with the same legitimacy and operational clarity as other branches of national security.

Despite occasional public announcements of enforcement actions—such as the dismantling of illegal charcoal kilns—there are rarely any resulting prosecutions. This enforcement gap undermines both deterrence and public confidence. Offenders learn quickly that infractions are unlikely to result in lasting consequences, particularly when enforcement duties are shared among agencies with limited coordination.

By contrast, Spain’s Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA), a specialised branch of the Civil Guard, provides a strong example of institutional clarity and consequence. SEPRONA not only investigates environmental crimes, but also ensures the collection of forensic evidence, coordinates with prosecutors, and tracks outcomes through a centralised system. This model demonstrates how environmental crime can be treated with the same rigor as other serious offenses.

In The Bahamas, the Bahamas has an opportunity to unify fragmented enforcement under a dedicated, professional entity, which must be fully empowered with investigative authority, centralised case tracking, and clear jurisdictional mandate to move beyond “collateral duty” enforcement and into sustained, strategic operations.

Critical to this transformation is the acknowledgment of the country’s environmental data gap. Without reliable baseline data, trend analysis, and real-time environmental intelligence, enforcement agencies are left reactive and resource-blind. Developing national indicators, digitising permitting systems, and integrating inter-agency data platforms are prerequisites for truly intelligence-led enforcement.

Equally important is the role of the judiciary. Specialised training for magistrates and prosecutors on environmental offenses, combined with the establishment of an environmental docket or court, would significantly enhance the effectiveness and consistency of judicial outcomes.

Public accountability and systemic reform

Enforcement is not solely a state function. Public accountability and community engagement are essential components. Mechanisms for citizen reporting—such as BahWILD TIP—must be strengthened, resourced, and normalised. This requires not just the availability of platforms, but public trust in their utility and responsiveness.

Enforcement systems must also be insulated from political interference. When environmental offenses are committed by politically connected actors or institutions, the absence of impartial enforcement erodes public confidence and encourages further violations.

Enforcement as a strategic imperative

In The Bahamas, the stakes of environmental degradation are existential. The ecosystems being degraded are not just ecological assets—they are the living infrastructure of our national survival. Mangroves protect against storm surge. Coral reefs buffer our shorelines. Marine species drive tourism and food security. Forests regulate our water security. These are not symbolic resources; they are strategic assets.

Environmental enforcement can no longer be treated as peripheral. It must be positioned as a central pillar of national security, ecological stewardship, and sustainable development. Through sustained investment, professionalisation, intelligence integration, and public partnership, enforcement can serve as the backbone of a resilient and secure Bahamas.