There is no new discovery of a container or stash of rosewood to report tonight, though it seems that attempts to smuggle illegal rosewood and export it to China these days has become as common as shootings in Belize City. In the past week there have been four busts including one in Golden Stream which […]
Still on the rosewood around five on Thursday evening, two containers containing tons of rosewood flitches were confiscated from the compound of Belize Engineering Company Limited. Officials of the Ministry of Forestry are still in the process of determining the volume, origin, and documentation of the precious woods in the containers which were registered to […]
Coc also made recommendations on how to proceed to put an end to the illegal extraction of the natural resource. Via Phone: Cristina Coc, Spokesperson, Maya Leaders Alliance “We are asking the ministry and the minister in particular to launch an inquiry into this situation; to establish a sound investigating team who will find […]
Move over pseudoephedrine, rosewood is now the hottest commodity. There were three busts of rosewood made today which signals that its illegal exportation is a brazen, lucrative and well organized scheme. Late this evening, two containers stored at Belize Engineering Limited adjacent to the Customs Compound on Caesar Ridge Road were opened at the request […]
There is yet another bust that took place on Tuesday in the Independence area. It happened at farm twelve near the village of San Pablo which is located about fifteen miles from the Swasey Bridge. Forestry and BDF personnel conducted an operation over the past weekend and found the illegal cargo last Sunday evening. The […]
For months the illegal rosewood extraction has been a topic of interest, and since the burning of over four hundred thousand dollars worth of flitches by forestry Minister Lisel Alamilla last Friday, let’s just say the topic is receiving national attention. And apparently with good cause as tonight there are credible reports that another […]
Despite a moratorium on the extraction of rosewood, the illegal exportation has continued, seemingly without pause. Last week, a shipment that was on its way overseas, likely to China, was stopped in its tracks. The confiscated rosewood was then set on fire by the Minister of Forestry Lisel Alamilla in the presence of the media. […]
Since the rosewood topic is such a burning issue, no pun intended, today News Five took to the streets to get some feedback. The question our reporter posed was simple; “Do you think Minister Lisel Alamilla should have burned up all that rosewood on Friday?” Here are some of the answers we got. Resident […]
On Wednesday night, a local alcalde busted a delivery truck in Deep River, Toledo which was being readied to transport over seven hundred pieces of rosewood destined for the lucrative export market. A moratorium on the extraction of the precious wood was put in place last year, but you wouldn’t know that because the illegal […]
A moratorium on the extraction of rosewood is still in place in the south and an assessment has reportedly not yet been completed, but the harvesting of the precious wood continues unabated in the Toledo District. On Wednesday night, a delivery truck preparing to load a large number of rosewood pieces was detected by the […]
On Wednesday, we reported that a moratorium has not stopped the extraction and exportation of rosewood from the south. And tonight, the Forestry Department has its hand full because a shipment of various species of precious woods was confiscated at the Belize City Port on Wednesday; the third this week. As required, Forestry officials were […]
There is a breaking story out of Toledo tonight where the illegal trade of rosewood continues at a brisk pace. At four p.m. today, a joint operation by Police and Forestry Department personnel led to the discovery of eighty pieces of Rosewood several miles from the seacoast of Punta Gorda Town, at Gomez Estate in […]
At the Belize Zoo, Lucky Boy met the media today. On the previous occasion when we reported on the black jaguar, he was severely malnourished after months of neglect while in captivity. Well Lucky Boy has made a remarkable recovery and today, he showed off his new fur as he well as his new habitat. […]
A moratorium was imposed on the harvesting of rosewood by Minister of Forestry, Lisel Alamilla, back in April in response to complaints over the unsustainable way that the valuable logs were being cut and sold. But after a major bust on Sunday night, it’s clear that the illegal trade is still very much alive. A […]
The 2012 Mesoamerican Reef Report Card was released by Healthy Reef Initiative. The findings of a study conducted along the coast of Belize and neighboring countries that comprise Mesoamerica show that the health of the eco-region is not in good shape and that fish stock and coral are at risk. News Five’s Duane Moody reports. […]
There is trouble brewing for Belize in the international fisheries industry tonight, following decisive measures taken by the European Union (EU) against eight countries it shares trade relations with. The EU recently issued a release, warning fishing vessels flying the Belizean flag that if they fail to comply with standards set by the European Fisheries […]
A sustainable Development in Action Forum was held this morning. The occasion was two pronged: the signing of a declaration officially designating the Turneffe Atoll as a protected area and the signing of the co-management agreement of national parks. There were two ministers present, few NGOs and enough primary school students. News Five’s Jose Sanchez […]
There were several undertakings that were announced during the two hour press conference at the old Belize. Minister of Tourism Manuel Heredia announced a tourism development plan for areas like Turneffe. The Fisheries Department also had an announcement; the living aquatic resource bill is an extremely important document that Minister Alamilla will take to Cabinet […]
US Capital Energy’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) presentation in Sunday Wood Village did not have the desired result for the company, the villagers, the NGO’s or the Department of the Environment. During that October meeting, an incident involving the director of the Sarstoon Temash Institute for Indigenous Management (SATIIM), Greg Choc and Martin Alegria, flared […]
Crooked Tree Villagers have been up in arms with the Belize Audubon Society following the confiscation of some twenty logs from a villager sometime last week. Audubon’s action has led to the villagers protesting in front of the office of the Wildlife Sanctuary at the entrance of the village. But it was their non-attendance at […]
The three hundred page document known as the U.S. Capital Energy’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was not easily digested by the Mayan villagers in Toledo. A language barrier and the technical nature of the EIA made it close to impossible for the villagers. It was, however, thoroughly reviewed by Edilberto Romero, executive director of Program […]
The environmental community has come out in full support of the Maya Leaders Alliance and the Toledo Alcaldes Association because of what they believe is a botched consultation in Sundaywood village. The meeting last week Thursday should have been to educate the public and respond to their concerns regarding U.S. Capital Energy’s desire to drill […]
Most of the discussion surrounding the U.S. Capital Environmental Impact Assessment focused on the incident during which Martin Alegria and Ligorio Coy removed Greg Choc of the Sarstoon Temash Institute for Indigenous Management from the microphone. While that was a rather unfortunate display, the content of the E.I.A. is finally taking the spotlight. The Association […]
The southern part of the country, which is the most economically deprived does not experience the violence associated with the Belize District. However, the residents of Toledo now have a battle of their own with a corporate citizen, since discussions have faltered with US Capital Energy Limited. Consultations regarding the environmental impact assessment for oil […]
The Department of the Environment teamed up with the UN Environment Program for a workshop on a subject that is not the exciting but is vital in the monitoring of substances that hazardous to the ozone. It is the third session with the Customs Department to sensitize them on the potential for the illegal trade […]
