No Mining Activities in Belize Rural Central, Sayonara Vulcan

Belize Rural Central Area Representative Dolores Balderamos-Garcia also attended Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting where it was decided that permission for mining activities within her constituency would not be granted.  The firm position against the proposal, she told News Five, was initially taken by herself and Minister of Tourism Anthony Mahler.

Dolores Balderamos-Garcia

On the phone: Dolores Balderamos-Garcia, Area Representative, Belize Rural Central

“I think Anthony Mahler, Minister Mahler and myself, were really the first ones that brought up this issue.  As you know, Minister Mahler is very concerned about tourism throughout our country, even in the smallest communities, and so myself, well he brought it up and then also I took up the mantle, if you could put it that way, because our people of Gales Point have been saying to us that they really do not want the kind of strip mining activity in their backyards as it were.  And so, I am very pleased that Cabinet has taken this kind of policy decision because I believe I may have been the first one to bring it up actually, in the House of Representatives and I am very happy as well that Minister Cordel [Hyde], responsible for mining, has joined in with us.  We have had the C.E.O. of the Ministry of Blue Economy, we have had Professor Boles, we have had the Audubon Society and many, many groups, as I have been saying have joined in with this kind of position that we have taken.  Now, that is not to say that we don’t want development in our country and I don’t believe that that would be an absolute bar for the company seeking to have an environmental and social impact assessment.  However, I believe that as Cabinet, and as this government, we have to be firm in our priorities and I am pleased, that is basically the bottom line, I am pleased that Cabinet has taken this decision as myself being the area rep for the people of Gales Point Manatee.”