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BEACH POLICY
(A policy for the use of the foreshore and the floor of
the sea)
1. INTRODUCTION
The beaches of Jamaica are of international renown, and remain one of
the main factors contributing to the growth and success of the island's
tourist industry. However, public access to the foreshore and the sea
has long been a recurring and sensitive issue in Jamaica.
Access to the shore and to the near shore waters has important ramifications
for tourism and beach front property owners, the recreational use of the
coastal resources by the general public and economic use by the fisheries
sector.
The Government of Jamaica, through the Natural Resources Conservation
Authority, has carried out a review of the policies regarding beaches
and the use of the seabed with a view to developing a comprehensive and
up to date policy, as set out in this document.
In 1954, a Commission of Inquiry was appointed to "investigate the
question of the use of beaches and foreshore lands throughout Jamaica,
taking into account the needs of the public for recreation and varying
purposes and to make recommendations for securing adequate facilities
for such purposes". The Beach Commission was set up because of public
agitation that fishermen were being squeezed out of beaches and the public
could not find places to go to. It was decided to develop comprehensive
legislation to deal with the problem "at this late stage of affairs". 1
Today, however, for many there are still unanswered questions about the
rights and obligations of both property owners and the general public,
particularly in light of the changes that have taken place in the population
and the society in the past forty years. There is a general perception
that there are fewer and fewer opportunities for enjoying the beach as
more coastal development takes place and as most public bathing beaches
are in a state of disrepair.
The subject is also of concern to the fisheries sector as traditional
fishing beaches have been coming under pressure from competing uses. A
relatively new area of concern is the leasing of the floor of the sea
for purposes of mariculture2 and the balancing of rights to
marine resources between traditional fishermen harvesting the water column,
and those engaged in mariculture who require long-term, exclusive leases
for bounded areas of the seabed.
The new policy is central to a comprehensive coastal resource strategy
and its purpose is to:
- Remove any vestige of real or implied discrimination against Jamaicans
in the use and enjoyment of their national heritage.
- Expand beach-related recreational opportunities for both local residents
and all segments of the tourism market.
- Protect the traditional rights of fishermen to access to the foreshore
and the sea, and beaching rights on their return from sea,
- Establish guidelines on the leasing and monitoring of the near shore
seabed for mariculture use.
______________________
1. Hansard, Proceedings
of the House of Representatives, November 29, 1955
2. Mariculture: the
artificial culture of any marine organism, either plant or animal, for
commercial purposes
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