In the early 1960s the island of St Croix was the site of one of the largest tidal mangrove estuaries in the Caribbean.
It was a place that attracted ecologists as researchers and tourists. A major portion of its shoreline consisted of the island’s most agriculturally productive estate, Anguilla, where sedimentation left a thick layer of topsoil.
At the beginning of WWII the United States government acquired the property by
eminent domain from the Hoffmann family, who were told that it would eventually be sold back. The property was instead acquired by the local government through the actions of local politicians.
In the early 1960s, at a time when it was difficult to site an alumina refinery, the estate was offered for free to the Harveys by the Unity populist political machine and the Democratic Governor Ralph M Paiewonsky.
The proposal met with complaint not only on St Croix, but major environmentalists came down from the states. The Unity political machine took the unilateral act as a forgone
conclusion.
At the behest of the environmentalists, it became subject to public hearing. By a rather questionable coincidence the chairman only accepted floor comments from people wearing a red tie or scarf. Coincidentally, the comments heard during the hearing were by people who stood to benefit and turned out overwhelmingly pro.
The result is that we Crucians lost the integrity of our superlative estuary as a tourist attraction while fish stocks are now down. Anguilla now sits under thirty feet of caustic red
mud.
There are few comparable sites to the one we lost in the early 1960s. We now are looking at the possible impending loss of the next largest mangrove estuary with the Beal Aerospace proposal. We are being told that there will not be an impact but the people who are the most knowledgeable on barges and those most knowledgeable on the environment are also the most outspoken against Beal.
There is no barge that can be used which can satisfy both Beal and the environment. A better and less intensive use can be found for Great Pond.
The environmentalists in the sixties suggested that a point west of Krause Lagoon would have less of an impact. Those of today suggest the same.
My great great grandfather, ironically named Beal, fished at Sombrero, the island Beal Aerospace proposed to launch its rockets.
I'm concerned about Sombrero too. Personally I think Beal’s proposal deserves
to be implemented somewhere, I hope Barima.
