A massive amount of fish was found dead in Black River, St. Elizabeth this month. Up to 10 miles upstream dead fish were being found. Jamaica’s National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) was slow to act and has now admitted that its slow response may have prevented it from identifying the culprit(s) responsible for the environmental mess.

In a statement following the September 1 incident, NEPA said that it suspected that there was a release of dunder. Dunder is the yeast-rich foam leftovers from one batch of rum that is used to start the yeast culture of a second batch. It is the traditional yeast source in Jamaican rum and is known to be a critical step in achieving an authentic rum flavor. The dark-coloured leftover smells like stale sugar and is toxic to fish. Many people who live in the area claim that is an annual event and are concerned about the agency’s lack of power to stop or investigate it. (more…)

Water Footprint

PRES: The city of Stockholm, often called beauty on water, hosted the annual World Water Week that ended last Friday. The conference brought together global leaders and thinkers to discuss water-related issues. The United Nations predicts that almost half of the world’s population will face shortages by 2030. Jocelyne Sambira reports on the concept of water footprints, the notion of measuring how much water we use. INTRO: We consume water for most of our daily activities like drinking, eating showering. We also consume water in the products that we buy. Because of the rise in the global population, the human consumption of water has tripled and it is putting a strain on our freshwater supplies. As a result, water footprint is emerging as a new concept. Hannah Studdard of the Global Public Policy Network on Water Management breaks it down for us. (more…)