andros bahamas
Bahama Islands News, Articles and Information
Land use manual urged
An environmentalist is calling on the government to introduce a land-use manual to protect the country's fragile environment, especially wetlands in Andros.Margo Blackwell, a guest on Sunday Conversations, an Island FM radio talk show, said that despite Andros being the largest island in The Bahamas its land must still be carefully used, and protected as necessary.
Mrs Blackwell heads the Bahamas Environmental Research Centre in Andros.
She said that, "Andros is huge and big and we all brag about it being the fourth largest island in the Caribbean...The bottom line is at least two thirds of Andros is wetlands connected from the east to the west, and so you don't have useable land. That's one of the issues that we have to be very careful about.
Bahamians celebrate
From Andros to Acklins to Grand Bahama, Cat Island, Eleuthera and Fox Hill, something will be happening all over The Bahamas this August holiday weekend and Bahamians are on the move to these destinations to be participants and spectators in the various activities.The evidence is seen at the Lynden Pindling International Airport, where the main parking lots are overflowing and additional parking places have been made available by the Airport Authority. This measure would encourage drivers to be more considerate and not to block other vehicles, and will also ensure that when they return, the vehicles are where they were parked and have not been towed.
Junkanoo enthusiasts will invade Freeport for Sunday night's second 'Feel the Rush' Junkanoo parade, which is expected to be even better than last year's initial parade.
Boca man says sharks are scary
Eric Weiss was snorkeling for lobster off the coast of Andros Island in the Bahamas when he encountered a mysterious shadow in the ocean's distance five summers ago. The shadow turned out to be an 8-foot bull shark. "It kept its distance but it definitely knew I was there," said Weiss, a Boca Raton resident and sophomore at the University of Florida. "I knew bull sharks are bad news because they are one of the most aggressive sharks even though it's rare to see one," Weiss said. "I pretty much had it in my head that if a bull shark saw me he would definitely come over and see what's up." And it did, getting as close as about 15 yards from Weiss before disappearing. "It was scary being there," Weiss said. "It was a big boy." Despite encounters like Weiss', shark populations are decreasing globally, said George H.Ernesto Eyes Cuba
Hardbeatnews, MIAMI, FL, Mon. Aug. 28, 2006: Hurricane Ernesto was again Tropical Storm Ernesto last night but forecasters predict it will be very near the southern coast of eastern Cuba this morning and could become a hurricane again. Last night, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami predicted that Ernesto, which ironically carries the same name as Cuban revolutionary, Ernesto Che Guevara, could regain it strength as it moves away from the mountainous terrain of Haiti and could become a hurricane as it approaches southeastern Cuba today. Tides of 4 to 6 feet above normal, along with large battering waves, are expected on the southern coast of eastern Cuba. A hurricane warning remains in effect for the Cuban provinces of Guantanamo, Santiago De Cuba, Granma, Holguin, Las Tunas and Camaguey as well as for the southwestern peninsula of Haiti, from the Haiti Dominican republic border westward to the southwestern tip of Haiti. A hurricane watch was also issued for Andros Island in the northwestern Bahamas.Bahamas Ministry of Health and National Insurance Announce End of Malaria Transmissions on Great Exuma
The Bahamas Ministry of Health and National Insurance advised on August 4, 2006 that local transmission of malaria on Great Exuma had positively ceased. This conclusion and announcement is based on the passage of three successive incubation periods of 15 days with no new cases of the disease identified. Upon confirmation of a case of malaria on June 6, 2006, the Ministry of Health, with assistance from the Pan American Health Organization, began an aggressive program on island to identify possible infections, treat where necessary and eradicate environmental sources of the disease. The investigation revealed a small cluster of 19 cases and all were successfully treated. No cases were reported outside the island of Great Exuma. Nassau/Paradise Island, Grand Bahama Island and Out Islands including Abaco, Andros, Bimini, Cat Island, Eleuthera, Harbour Island and Long Island were unaffected.
Land management team for Andros
Two companies have team-ed up to create a property management firm that would manage land in Andros. According to media reports, Case Financial, a business development company, and Management One, a Nassau-based property management company, signed agreements for joint ownership of The Great Andros Land Company."The company is being formed to develop a plan to acquire and/or assume operational and developmental control of approximately 4,000 acres of land in Fresh Creek owned by the Hotel Corporation of The Bahamas, a government agency that holds title to the Crown Lands of The Bahamas," according to a Market Wire report.
A hotel and marina is included in the Fresh Creek property that The Great Land Company will manage. The company did not indicate whether those structures would remain, although "ex-tensive beach frontage" could be one of the appealing features for future development.
Marine resources at risk
The protection of the country's marine resources is a matter of national security, according to a local environmentalist. A guest on More 94 FM's 'Real Talk Live', Margo Blackwell, Director of The Bahamas Environmental Research Centre, said local authorities must work together to combat poaching."The police has power, customs has power and the Defence Force power has that power," said Ms Blackwell. "We need to combine our efforts."
Ms Blackwell added that the largest island in the country, Andros, has only one Department of Fisheries officer stationed there. More must be done to protect the underwater environment, she urged.
"I think this is a National Security issue," she stated. "I think it is so important that our resources be protected."
In May Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources, Leslie Miller, expressed his concern over the country's dwindling marine life.
Hurricane watch now in effect for Grand Bahama
Weather experts are urging residents to be prepared as a hurricane watch is now in effect for Grand Bahama, Bimini, Andros and the Berry Islands.A tropical storm warning is also in effect for Ragged Island, Great Exuma and the Central Bahamas.
"The advisory had been put in place after tropical storm Ernesto made landfall on the southeastern coast of Cuba," said Chief Meteorologist, Donna Duncombe.
"At 11 a.m. the centre of tropical storm Ernesto was about 35 miles west-northwest of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. That makes it about 475 miles southeast of Freeport, Grand Bahama and is moving toward the northwest near 10 miles per hour."
With the storm expected to continue moving north for the next 24 hours, Duncombe said that the maximum winds have decreased to near 40 miles per hour with higher gusts, with further weakening to occur as it continues over land.