Cayman Islanders are complaining about sewage pollution in the North Sound off the coast of Grand Cayman. compasscayman.com reports:
The Water Authority Cayman has denied claims from private citizens that its sewage treatment plant is leaking waste into the North Sound.
Those statements were made following photos that were e-mailed around Grand Cayman depicting what was described as raw sewage floating in the sound.
Water Authority Director Gelia Frederick van Genderen said claims made in that e-mail were incorrect.
However, pollution is occurring in the calm body of water that is one of Cayman’s favourite boating and tourism destinations, according to both the authority and Department of Environment officials. Evidence of that pollution is beginning to show up in the form of little green and brown coloured plants growing in the water.
Algae is taking hold in some of the near to shore areas of the sound.
The increase in algal growth in the waters around Grand Cayman have been attributed in part to contamination entering the marine environment from on land, and partly to the general decline in the health of Grand Cayman coral reefs. There is no quick fix solution to the problem, according to officials of the Department of Environment; long term changes in development planning and management are necessary.
Read more at compasscayman.com.
[Photo: Ray Bodden]
