Coastal Zone holds open day

Now that it occupies one of Belize City’s choicest seaside locations, the organisation with the unwieldy long name is making sure that the public can see what it’s doing. Jacqueline Woods has the story.

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting

The Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute is the country’s major data centre for coastal information on Belize. Today, for the first time, the public is being invited to visit the facility and tour a display that highlights its work and programmes.

Imani Fairweather-Morrison, C.E.O, C.Z.M.A.I.

“You constantly need to educate people about your resources that we enjoy and that we’re proud to boast that we have. So we decided on the September celebrations because we wanted to contribute and we wanted to ensure that people are aware of the different programmes that we have.”

Information such as, manatee research, data management, coral reef monitoring and water quality monitoring programmes.

Imani Fairweather-Morrison

“In a nut shell, the coral reef programme will identify any changes with the barrier reef, which is the second largest in the world. And so we want to be able to detect any subtle differences in what is happening with the state of the coast. Similarly, with the water quality testing; change in new trends content, sediment, it’s important that you monitor them and that you detect any change so that you can inform decision makers.”

The public will also have an opportunity to meet C.Z.M.A.I.’s newly appointed director, Leandra Cho-Ricketts. Ricketts has been on

the job for only one week, but already she says there are specific areas she intends to address.

Leandra Cho-Ricketts, Director, C.Z.M.A.I.

“We also need research that can generate funds to sustain us, so I’d like to develop our research further, in addition to our community involvements, because that’s very important. We’ve heard a lot of cries from fishermen about them not being involved. SO that would be a focus of mine, to try and work further with communities.”

Members of the public, especially students, are invited to take advantage of the open day. Jacqueline Woods reporting for News 5.

The Coastal Zone exhibition is open to the public all day on Tuesday and Wednesday.