The Official Site of the CHAGUARAMAS DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies

Remarks by

Honorable Dr. Roodal Moonilal

Minister of Housing and the Environment

At the

World Forestry Day Celebrations

Monday March 21, 2011

San Fernando Hill

It is always a pleasant opportunity to be here at the San Fernando Hill, an important national landmark not only for the community of San Fernando and  surrounding districts but indeed for the entire population of Trinidad and Tobago.

 I am a proud Southerner and I could almost see my house, and the village of St. Madeleine where I grew up and still live, from this vantage point.

 I am therefore very pleased to join you all here this morning and I thank the Forestry Division for choosing this beautiful venue for this most important occasion.  I join the Forestry Division in welcoming all of you, particularly those who are visiting the San Fernando Hill for the first time.  Are you not impressed that just outside of our industrial capital this preserve remains for the enjoyment of our citizens?

 I note that this historical landmark is a symbol of environmental success.  Its preservation was a struggle to protect and preserve our environment as this Hill was being systematically quarried until the Forestry Division and other environmentally conscious groups stepped in to save it.

 Today, Ladies and Gentlemen, is World Forestry Day, celebrated internationally on the 21st March each year to highlight the role that the science and practice of Forestry play in the conservation of our environment.  This year World Forestry Day has added significance since it falls in a year which has beren proclaimed by the United Nations as the International Year of Forests, with the theme, “Forests for People”.

 These observances underscore a renewed national environmental thrust which started last year with a personally endorsed Clean and Beautiful Trinidad and Tobago initiative launched by our Honourable Prime Minister, Mrs. Kamla Persad Bissessar.

 This morning, three projects are being highlighted to commemorate World Forestry Day: firstly, we start an exciting community-based initiative entitled the “Community Green Space Challenge.”  Secondly, in an effort to foster greater awareness of environmental issues among the younger segment of our population, the Environment Management Authority, will launch its Primary School’s Competition.  And The food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations will also be launching a collaborative Forest Research Project today as part of their contribution to World Forestry Day.

 We, in this beautiful land of Trinidad and Tobago, are blessed with a relative abundance of forest resources and ecosystems.  But we must always be deeply conscious of the need for conservation and protection of these resources.  We must hold ourselves accountable to future generations.  Each day we are witnesses to the changes that are taking place in the world’s climate through greenhouse gas effects and global warming, and the tragic ensuing loss of precious biodiversity.  As a country and as a people we must play our role in the global struggle to reserve the negative trends.

 We must acknowledge that our irresponsible actions are causing our wildlife to die, watersheds to diminish, fish spawning areas to shrink and powerful yet-to-be-discovered sources of medicines to be eradicated.  Forests help to regulate our planet’s temperature, provide all living organisms with oxygen, reduce pollution and are a continuous supply of nutrients and homes for millions of species of flora and fauna, including humans.  We each have the power to make a difference.

 The Forestry Division has been persistent in its efforts to foster greater environmental conservation through the formulation and implementation of many programmes and policies.  The Forest Fire Protection programme and the Forest Incentive Programme are just two of the many initiatives which have been well received by an appreciative public.  There are now approximately two thousand farmers registered and benefiting from the incentive for cultivating their land with forest crops, thereby assisting in the conservation effort while realizing a profit from this enterprise.

 The new Protected Areas Policy and the revised Forest policy recognize that forest management includes conservation, access to natural resources and their wise use.  What this means is while Government agencies will have the primary responsibility of implementing the policy, these policies must serve to influence the behavior, programs and activities of all stakeholders, including state and private groups.  The goal of these policies is to sustainably manage the forest resources of Trinidad and Tobago to provide for social, economic, ecological, cultural and spiritual needs of present and future generations.  This in turn will contribute meaningfully to the sustainable development of the country, enhancing the quality of human lift while protecting biological diversity and ecological processes.

 My dear friends, this is where every citizen can play an integral role in the continuing development of Trinidad and Tobago.  You can create a much deeper environmental awareness through personal effort and community action groups.  This desired community based approach is a valuable element in the search for solutions to the problem of degradation of our natural resources and the environment.

 It is in this context that today, I launch the Community Green Space Challenge of Trinidad and Tobago. This challenge will provoke thoughts and ideas from action groups in initiating activities that will not only enhance the environment, but will strengthen the bond within communities.  Your challenge is to transform neglected and forgotten spaces within your neighborhood into green spaces for the community to use and enjoy, while creating the framework for action and education.  It allows participation from community groups, religious institutions, non-governmental organizations and youth groups to engage in projects under the following categories:-

-         Landscape Restoration

-         Education and Public Relations

-         Wildfire Conservation

-         Ecotourism Initiative

 Participating groups will benefits in various ways.  These groups will learn to work together in stimulating green thinking, build self esteem and community pride as well as creative thinking in landscaping and beautification projects.  As an added incentive, the winner of the Trinidad and Tobago Green Space Challenge will be presented with an Award, as well as Twenty Five Thousand dollars.  Over Seventy Five Thousand Dollars in total prizes will be awarded for this competition which will run for a six months, culminating in an award ceremony in October.

 As Minister responsible for the Environment I am looking forward to this Challenge resulting in dramatic enhancement of community spaces throughout Trinidad and Tobago.

 As you heard earlier this morning from Dr. Singh, The Environmental Management Authority is also utilizing this occasion to launch its Primary Schools Competition in the Victoria Educational District.  This programme will promote green thinking among primary schools and students will address specific environmental topics such as:

-         Importance of Wetlands

-         Forests Biodiversity

-         Waste Management

 I am also very pleased that the Food and Agriculture Organisation in association with the University of the West Indies and the Forestry Division took the opportunity of this event to introduce the Forest Research Project.

 This project is geared towards assisting private forestry farmers with management approaches and techniques to prevent pests and diseases associated with forest species.  This facility made possible through financial and technical support from the FAO underscores the Ministry’s and the Forestry’s Division commitment to integration and collaboration with our Regional and Global partners.

 The Government and People of Trinidad and Tobago are very grateful for the support and assistance provided over the years by The Food and Agriculture Organisation, including the recent revision of the Forest Policy.  The FAO was influential in the establishment of the Forestry School at the Eastern Caribbean Institute of Agriculture and Forestry, which has trained hundred of Foresters, Forest Rangers and Game Wardens who have impacted positively in managing the natural renewable resources throughout the Region.

 In closing I would like to reiterate to all of you and to the wider national community that real power is in the hands of citizens. We all have a role to play in restoring and conserving our environment so that future generations will also benefit from our rich and unique biodiversity.

 Let each of us here this morning, gathered for a common purpose in this idyllic setting take the challenge further afield to create a sustained greener, healthier environment.

I thank you.

  Roodal Moonilal

Minister of Housing and the Environment

see Minister's Speech on Launch of International Year of Forest 2011 & World Wetland Day 2011