Public Sector

Jamaica has a long history of institutionalizing its environmental concerns by legislating measures to address them. A number of laws have been passed that give several agencies the authority to regulate and manage the environment. Unfortunately, the piecemeal basis on which these laws were created over the years has resulted in overlapping of the responsibilities of some institutions.

The natural resources management functions of Government (eg. management and administration of national parks and protected areas, forestry, wildlife and fisheries) are conducted mainly by the NRCA and by the Ministry of Agriculture's Forestry Department and Fisheries Division. The vast majority of Government lands are nevertheless, administered by the Commissioner of Lands.

The recent establishment of the Ministry of Environment and Housing has brought together under one Ministry, responsibility for environmental protection and management, physical planning, land management, estate management and housing (projects as well as the implementation of Operation Pride).

It is expected that there should be better coordination of the agencies (including the NRCA, Town Planning Department and the Commissioner of Lands) which have a key role to play in national and physical resource management.

It is the NRCA which has primary responsibility for environmental management in Jamaica, and functions as the government umbrella agency for environmental protection. It has broad powers of enforcement for environmental law under the NRCA Act of 1991. These include issuing of enforcement notices and immediate cessation orders, as well as ordering prosecution of offending persons before a Resident Magistrate. The Authority has a Regulatory and Compliance Division which specifically carries out environmental monitoring and enforcement. The job of environmental monitoring is also conducted routinely by each of the technical divisions within the NRCA under their respective portfolios and non-compliance reported to the Enforcement Division for enforcement action to be taken.

The NRCA, a statutory body, is also structured to interrelate environmental with physical planning. The NRCA, as well as the Ministry of Health's Environmental Control Division, is represented on the Town and Country Planning Authority. At present a coordinated development approval system is in place which is to be widened in scope to include an environmental screening system which will require environmental impact assessments of developments.

The NRCA is empowered under Section 10 of the NRCA ACT to request environmental impact assessments of any development, construction or enterprise in a prescribed area or of a prescription description or category which is in the opinion of the Authority likely to have an adverse effect on the Environment. The EIA process will involve wide public participation and the views of local communities will be taken into account.

The documentation for the EIA system is being prepared and a list of prescribed categories or description of activities has been developed along with an Application Form for a Permit to undertake development, construction of enterprise in a prescribed area.

A draft brochure outlining how the system works including review of the EIA report and public participation in hearings and a flow chart of the steps involved from application to grant/denial of the permit has also been documented. Guidelines for conducting an EIA and Sample Terms of Reference have also been developed. The NRCA ACT provides for an appeal to the Minister by the applicant if the permit is denied, and the criteria for granting or denying the permit are now being developed.

Jamaica's environmental health/pollution control functions are conducted by the Ministry of Health through the ECD and the NRCA which are currently focussing on control of hazardous and infectious wastes, solid wastes and sewage disposal, industrial pollution and water quality monitoring, especially in fragile coastal zones and Tourism related areas.

The NRCA requires companies to submit information on pollution control as it relates to waste generated and the waste management practices of the entities. In order to supply this information, the entities need to conduct an environmental audit.

Coastal resources management and beach protection is also the purview of the NRCA which intends to review and raise fees for permits and licenses as well as introduce creative environmental cost-recovery mechanisms, as it seeks to strengthen its enforcement and management capabilities in all areas.

Forestry, soil conservation and watershed management are in the main, the purview of the Ministry of Agriculture through its Forestry Department and RADA. NRCA also has responsibility for watershed management and protection and in a planning capacity, works closely with the Forestry Department which has responsibility for implementation.

The promotion of conservation and proper use of underground water resources and monitoring of the surface and groundwater resources is the responsibility of the Underground Water Authority. With the current review of Water legislation, this entity is to be replaced by a Water Resources Authority for which new legislation is pending.

The Scientific Research Council conducts research and develops appropriate and environmental friendly technologies for use in industry. The Bureau of Standards develops and enforces standards for manufactured products thereby ensuring elimination or minimization of negative impacts on human health and the natural resources of the environment. The UWI Centre for Environment and Development conducts research on the interrelationship of human and natural resources and development.

The main co-ordinating mechanisms which can provide a measure of cohesiveness among government environmental agencies are the Environmental Inter-Ministerial Committee and the Inter-agency Technical Advisory Committee which are currently functional. The former consisting of all members of the Cabinet, has responsibility for ensuring environmental policies and programs and other initiatives are supported by the GOJ. The Inter-agency Technical Advisory Committee is comprised of senior personnel of sectoral agencies and services the Inter-Ministerial Committee and the members of the Natural Resources Conservation Authority. Both committees can provide institutional coordination, by ensuring the rational and efficient allocation of scarce resources and reducing duplication of effort, and the conflict of interests among these overlapping agencies. There is a need to ensure that regular meetings are kept of these committees and a concerted effort made, due to their critical importance. In the case of the Technical Advisory Committee, the intention is to do its business through sub-committees which will deal with specific assignments.

Coordination with the Local Government authorities, otherwise known as the Parish Councils, is being strengthened. Traditionally these entities are not considered among environmental agencies. They however, have numerous responsibilities related to environmental management, including land use and subdivision controls, solid waste management, cleansing, local physical planning and municipal Parks. Consequently, an effort is being made by the NRCA to work more closely with them and bring them into the mainstream of planning, and at the very initial stages of project development. The NRCA will encourage consultation and collaboration between local government, NGOs, community groups and the private sector to ensure community participation in the decision making process, contributing to successful implementation of its policies and projects at the local level.

There is also close coordination with the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) which is the government central planning agency.

The NRCA sits on the Pre-selection Committee of the PIOJ which reviews all government projects before inclusion in the Public Sector Investment Programme. PIOJ is the implementing agency for the PARC project under DEMO which is establishing national parks and a system of protected areas, and for which NRCA is the executing agency. It recently completed the pilot phase of this project, as PARC I. The PIOJ also implemented the National Forestry Action Plan.

The NRCA also coordinates closely with the Ministry of Education, the University of the West Indies (Mona) and the College of Art Science and Technology (CAST) through a committee established by the NRCA called the National Environmental Education Committee. This committee has representation from a wide cross-section of Government and NGO agencies and is concerned with developing a national strategy for environmental education. It is expected that the Ministry of education will include environmental issues within the schools' curriculum at every level. The University (UWI) and CAST have well established environmental programs. Recognition of the importance to the Environment at the UWI has lead to the creation of two chairs there, one in Sustainable Development and one in Environmental Management, respectively, within the field.

The activities of Government agencies are hampered by the down sizing of the Public Sector, inadequate financial resources and inability to attract scarce technical skills due to uncompetitive wage levels. NRCA has put in place all its Senior technical staff and has put in place major institutional strengthening projects with the assistance of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The GOJ/USAID sponsored DEMO- Development of Environmental Management Organizations Project will establish National Parks and a system of protected areas, and provide institutional strengthening for the NRCA as well as environmental NGO's working through their umbrella agency named NEST- National Environmental Societies Trust.

Private Institutions and NGO's

The private sector is the engine of economic growth and development in Jamaica. Economic development and its accompanying environmental degradation makes it imperative for the private sector to share the concern and responsibility for preserving the environment. The Private Sector Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ) which is a membership, umbrella organization for private sector entities has established an Environmental sub-committee within its ranks in recognition of this fact and as a form of commitment.

The main private institutions however, which are concerned with the environment are the private voluntary organizations which play a vital role in research, financing, management, and public awareness and education and sustainable community-based development. The lead agencies among this group are NEST, their umbrella organization, the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ) which offers grant funding, the Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust (JCDT) which is involved with the development and management of National Parks. The emergence of parish and community based organizations have added a bottom-up approach to environmental management at the local level and these groups continue to implement local environmental improvement projects. Under NEST, many of these groups are attempting to provide a more coordinated and consistent approach to environmental management activities.

The NRCA has established a close working relationship with the private sector and NGO. It has representation from both on its Board of directors and vice-versa. It sees the development of broad national consultation and consensus spanning the public and private sectors and communities, as being part of a national strategy for sustainable development. It is further intended to have an NGO representative on the Government Boards with environmental responsibility. These nominations will be done through the already established environmental NGO umbrella organization. Fora such as round tables will also serve as mechanisms to broaden participation and collaboration between Government and NGOs. Government intends to increasingly work though these agencies to implement projects being that they have broad based community support, and intends to strengthen NGO capabilities through close liaison consensus building and programmes for institutional strengthening among them.

Action:

The national environmental institutional framework is fairly well in place. Over the next three years, Government will therefore focus primarily on institutional strengthening under the following projects and allowing scope for increased public participation:

GOJ/USAID DEMO Project
CIDA ENACT Project
IDB Institutional Strengthening Project (Phase II)
Implementation of EIA Screening system for developments involving public participation.

Within two years, Government will designate at least one full-time, senior level position within NRCA to provide a liaison to both NGOs and private sector groups. Beyond the role of simply informing the public of Government policies, this staff member would facilitate discussion on Government policies, and coordinate and support private environmental initiatives.

Within two years, Government will make regular presentations to the private sector through such organizations as the Private Sector Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ). To the extent feasible, Government will seek an open dialogue and consult the private sector in its preparation of regulations and incentives for responsible environmental management.

Within the next year, NRCA will complete and make publicly available clear descriptions of Government policies and procedures for new developments, including straightforward guidelines for environmental impact assessments. These procedures will include the requirements of NRCA and all other relevant planning agencies. The Government recognizes that to encourage investment and maintain the confidence of the private sector a clear and transparent set of ground rules for sustainable development must be firmly set in place.

Within the next three years, the Government will work to strengthen the court system's ability to enforce Jamaica's environmental statutes, by creating more enforcement regulations, higher penalties for breaches and non-compliance and sensitizing judges more to environmental issues, among other measures. It will also provide a more effective avenue for resolution of any disputes, and a voice for stakeholders in the sustainable development process.

During the next three years, as Government's role in Jamaica's economy is reshaped, a number of important environmental services will be transferred to the private sector through management contracts for such activities as water and sewage meter reading and waste disposal.

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