Caption: Princess Beatrix, Governor Holiday and Nature Foundation Board Members Frank Boekhout and Rikke Speetjens and Tadzio Bervoets
The Sint Maarten Nature Foundation had the honor to play host to Her Royal
Highness Princess Beatrix during a Royal visit to the Nature Foundation
office and the Simpson Bay Lagoon on Wednesday. The Princess, on Sint
Maarten as part of the Kingdom Youth Parliament meetings, specifically
requested to visit the Nature Foundation and its staff and board members and
to be shown the current status of the Simpson Bay Lagoon.
Upon arrival in Cole Bay the Princess and His Excellency Governor Holiday
and entourage were introduced to Nature Foundation Board and staff and
received an update on various projects currently conducted by the Foundation
including work related to the control of lionfish, the nature education
program, the Nature Foundation sea turtle management project, the Nature
Foundation’s work regarding Climate Change and the Man of War Shoal Marine
Protected Area.
Her Royal Highness then proceeded to tour the Simpson Bay Lagoon where she
received information on the ecological issues and their management therein.
Nature Foundation staff and board members gave an explanation of some of the
issue currently faced by the Lagoon and the steps which have been taken by
the Nature Foundation to manage them. Her Royal Highness received a complete
picture of what is currently ongoing with regards to the Lagoon including
the filling in of certain parts of the Lagoon and the concern of the Simpson
Bay community regarding some of the issues that are on-going. The Princess
was very interested to hear about the current dialogue concerning the proper
ecological management and zonation of the whole area.
Positive developments within the Lagoon were also highlighted, including the
mangrove reforestation project at the Simpson Bay Causeway, the plans to
protect Little Key and to improve water quality of the Lagoon, water quality
testing done by the Nature Foundation on a regular basis and the plans to
remove, clean and sink wrecks currently in the Lagoon as artificial reefs
jointly by the Nature Foundation and SLAC.
The highlight of the trip was when the Princess visited the Mullet Pond
Section of the Simpson Bay Lagoon, an area currently in the final stages of
being protected as an important wildlife area. Her Royal Highness was
particularly impressed with Mullet Pond and commended its proposal for
listing as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Treaty, a
first for Sint Maarten.
Princess Beatrix, who is a Royal Patron of the Dutch Caribbean Nature
Alliance, an umbrella organization under which the Nature Foundation also
falls, also discussed the finances and capability of the Foundation and
commended the organization for achieving sound and realistic environmental
management with limited staff and resources available to them. The Princess
stated that she was impressed at the work which was accomplished over the
last few years and encouraged the Foundation to continue to work to protect
and safeguard nature on St. Maarten.