UNC: EMA should intervene in Mosquito Creek highway project

UNC shadow minister of works and transport Dr Roodal Moonilal is calling on the Environmental Management Authority to immediately investigate whether NIDCO had violated the terms of the certificate of environmental clearance (CEC) issued for the Mosquito Creek and move to intervene and terminate works on the project.

Speaking at the UNC’s weekly media conference on Sunday, Moonilal said the CEC listed works and projects that should be carried out as a condition of it being granted.

“This report speaks about protecting the mangrove, where you have to implement engineering design for clearing of vegetation, protecting the wetland areas of the Godineau swamp area, because the mangrove needs to be regularly flushed by seawater. We are asking today whether, in the construction of that segment, they abided by the policies, directions, and recommendations of the CEC? Our information is that in the construction of that segment, NIDCO, the ministry, and the contractors etc violated and/or ignored the CEC.”

He said it was a serious matter that dealt with a potential environmental disaster as it dealt with the sustainability of the marine life in that area that sustains livelihood, jobs, and economies.

“Were the projects implemented as stated in the CEC? We call on the EMA to immediately terminate works on that segment, and if the CEC was violated, to take enforcement action against MOWT, NIDCO, and the contractors who are culpable for violating the CEC if needed.”

Moonilal said the issue was not that the highway should not be constructed, it was that the recommendations of the EMA should be carried out. He noted that the population was not being told how much it would cost to rehabilitate or redesign the highway section.

A part of the South Trunk Road collapsed on January 2. Works Minister Rohan Sinanan said this poses no threat to commuters or the integrity of the northbound and southbound roadways at Mosquito Creek.