Three Blind Mice Who Took Choiseul/Saltibus on a Visionless Trip?

No access towards Sab Wisha

I make no apologies for the statement that Ferguson John, Rufus Bousquet and Lorne Theophilus are all one of the same breed of politicians, period. They were there for their self-aggrandizement - three visionless, mindless and incompetent mercenaries who embarked on a mission, to my mind, with no purpose and interest of the Choiseul/Saltibus constituency at heart. Prove me otherwise if you can.

However, if we stretch it along party lines, that may not be the cry you will hear. For the Flambeaus you will hear the Rufus has been the best thing Choiseul has ever seen since JMD Bousquet. The Etoiles shouted that Fergy did more for Choiseul than Rufus ever did. On both sides you will hear that Lorne was the worst Rep this Constituency has ever seen - pas mwen kee de e! His margin of defeat at the last general elections by a newbie attests to this.

Present state of the Pond

My inspiration for writing this piece, though I had decided to take a break (work piling on my a… like an avalanche) came from a discussion I had with a “potential entrepreneur” whom I have time for. When he uttered, “Boy I can solve the Choiseul Fisheries’ Pond problem.”  This sent my mind into overdrive. After we had discussed numerous political issues (I am rather cold these days) which he considers of paramount importance,  he went on to mention that the sand mining which is done under the guise of unblocking the Fisheries’ Pond is doing more harm than good to Choiseul. Just as soon as the cleaning is done, it’s back to square one AGAIN. A recurring decimal? Hmmmm! He got my attention here for sure!!!!

The state of the Fisheries Complex Pond is an outcry. Sand mining is dangerous. The mining of the pond sand is a direct cause of erosion along the western shorelines of Choiseul.  It is very damaging to the beach fauna and flora, ruinous to beach aesthetics, and frequently causes environmental damage to other coastal ecosystems associated with the beach.

Have you ever considered walking from the village beach to Sab Wisha along the beach - An impossible task! Where has all the sand gone? Ask the Fisheries Complex Management. People, we are losing our beaches day by day, bit by bit, to this indiscriminate sand mining at the complex. 

Excerpts from http://coastalcare.org/2009/06/documenting-the-global-impacts-of-beach-sand-mining/ reads, “Most reports of sand mining activities are found at the very local scale (if the mining is ever documented at all). Yet, sand mining in many localities has resulted in the complete destruction of beach (and related) ecosystems along with severe impacts to coastal protection and tourism.

More distress for fishers

Problems caused by beach sand mining include: destruction of natural beaches and the ecosystems they protect (e.g. dunes, wetlands), habitat loss for globally important species (e.g. turtles, shorebirds), destruction of nearshore marine ecosystems, increased shoreline erosion rates, reduced protection from storms, tsunamis, and wave events, and economic losses through tourist abandonment and loss of coastal aesthetics.

The threats posed by sand mining are made even more critical given the prospect of a significant rise in global sea level over the coming decades…….. In many cases, addressing the issue of sand mining requires addressing the local issues that allow it to persist. This includes poverty, corruption, and unregulated development…….”

We are in serious dodo if this sand mining of the pond continues and the contractor going away with the sand instead of redistribution it along the shoreline. Generations to come will have no beach.

Discussions were still going on among the locals as how best to build this complex when Fergy in his haste to win votes allowed to the project to go ahead. Rufus another blind mouse, instead of finding a solution to the problem invested in an excavator and truck to get rid of the sand in the pond. During that time the beaches were already getting lost. Lorne, in spite of his  so called love for tourism watched the beaches further deteriorate  while all he did was encourage more frequent sand mining in the pond.

So my good friend says he can solve the problem. He says what is needed is dredging. He believes that whatever equipment is used it must be able to enter deep into the sea. However I forgot to ask him what guarantee he has that this will work? And what is he doing to ensure that he gets the contract?  Choiseulians, Fishers, there may be hope.

We of the Choiseul/Saltibus Constituency and more specifically the fishers have been taken for a ride for too long with Fergy, Rufus and Lorne who never had the vision to  solve this perennial problem at the fisheries' pond - Three Blind Mice.

The ball is now in Bradley’s Court. I look forward to see this "potential enterpreneur's" ideas taken seriously to remedy this situation in the village. But it still remains of great concern to me - what theory/proof that his method will work?