Residents battle illegal logging at Central Farm
When Belize’s economy was dominated by mahogany, this was a busy time of year with the quiet of the forests replaced by the hum of saw blades and thumping blows of axes. And while the timber industry is now an also-ran in terms of economic impact, the nation’s forests are still being logged … although not always according to the rules. News Five’s Marion Ali reports on a case of environmental degradation in an unexpected place: Central Farm.
Marion Ali, Reporting
The first landowner we spoke to, who wished not to be identified, described what happened.
Voice of landowner, Central Farm
“They come down through the jungle and down to the creek because the big trees are growing inside the creek. They have big chainsaws and they fall the trees. They take out the bigger sections of the logs and whatever is left is left as debris in the creek, nobody bothers to clean it up. And the ones that are closer to the sawmill that we saw up ahead there, they just pull those out with the tractor and load them onto the sawmill that’s there.”
Francisco Bacab, landowner/resident, Central Farm
“The creek is supposed to left sixty-six feet of the creek. I got my piece close to the creek and I left the sixty-six feet alone. I never touch that piece. The one who have the contracts, he tell me he got permit from Mr. Pech and that’s why he’s cutting the tree, the log. He cutting for the government to build like a corral. That’s what he tell me.”
According to these landowners, the logging, conducted by contractor Ronald Gentle, began around Easter and has been ongoing ever since. It was done with permission given by the Forest Department in San Ignacio upon recommendations from the Agricultural Office in Central Farm, headed by this man, Melanio Pech.
Melanio Pech, Director, Central Farm, Department of Agric.
“The contract was given to this individual who is an expert in doing that kind of logging so, with the assumption the contract was given to him that he will know where to cut the logwood.”
Marion Ali
“No but are you saying that no supervision, no monitoring, nobody went back there to assess before the approval was given? You relied solely on the discretion of this expert?”
Melanio Pech
“We identified the logs from our supervisors on the farm who took the person there to show them where the logs are.”
Marion Ali
“And Central Farm personnel said it’s ok to cut within the sixty-six foot limit?”
Melanio Pech
“Not necessarily to cut within that area but the gentleman when I checked with him, he told me that area of the creek was dry completely, it’s completely dry.”
Marion Ali
“I’m sitting in Garbutt’s Creek at Central Farm. At this time of year, as you can see, it’s dry. But when the rains come the water rises as high as six feet. And that is what concerns the residents of this area. That the logging activity taking place, coupled with the debris behind me is what will affect their daily lives.”
Voice of landowner
“It’s just left there to rot and contaminate the creek and clog up the creek. And when the rainy season comes and it floods then the water will back up and do damage to our property and cause erosion and all of that. This is a natural flow for the water and this creek has been carved out for many years and that’s the way it’s supposed to run, noh.”
Francisco Bacab
“I think that will affect my family a lot. Not only my family, a lot of people come get water in the creek and when the rain come all this go into the front and it’s not good, yeah.”
Voice of landowner
“The Forestry Department has been here and they have inspected the place and said that illegal logging is occurring in Garbutt’s Creek. What has actually happened is that loggers are in here cutting trees that are actually in the creek bed and also within the sixty-six feet that makes up the watershed for Garbutt’s Creek.”
Now that these landowners have loudly complained, Pech and the contractor are about to take measures to lessen and even reverse the impact of the logging.
Melanio Pech
“He will be removing his equipment. He will be removing whatever other logs, lumber that he had already prepared and then he will clear all that debris from the place away from there so that the creek can flow freely when the rains begin. Now, with my knowledge that this situation has happened I am really concerned as well and in fact I am prepared to go back there and do some replanting.”
But as one resident points out, had the office adhered to the regulations in the first place, then the effort now to try and correct the error would not have been necessary.
Svea Dietrich-Ward, landowner/resident, Central Farm
“Well we all know that we should not cut creek side and we need the watershed and we need the water which disappears slowly if it’s dried all around and that was one way of protecting it, by leaving trees standing. So to me it was very wrong to cut them. That’s what I objected to.”
And while those objections have brought promises of corrective action, area residents remain skeptical.
Marion Ali
“I don’t see anybody here, you’ve brought me through the whole stretch. Does that mean that the work has been put on halt?”
Voice of Landowner
“I wouldn’t say so cause as you’ve seen the log has already been prepared and all is left is to take it out. You and I walked along the track that you’d seen was freshly cut and they’re preparing to take it out again.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Marion Ali.
