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No coronavirus pandemic has stopped Jamaica in preparing, and now eventually, submitting a tougher climate action plan under the Paris Agreement.
In a press release, the government of Jamaica announced that the country’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) has already been uploaded to the NDC Registry of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The next UN climate summit was moved to November 2021 due to the pandemic. The United Kingdom, the host for next year, praised the move and urged other nations to follow suit as quickly as possible.
“Fantastic to see Jamaica’s NDC showing greater climate ambition and scope during these difficult times,” said Alok Sharma in a tweet. Sharma is the president of the COP26 talks and UK Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. “We ask all countries to publish their own ambitious NDCs as soon as possible,” he added.
According to the NDC Registry, Jamaica is the 13th nation globally to submit this year an updated plan for the five-year milestone of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The first country was Lebanon, which submitted its plan in February.
Jamaica, which finally opened its borders for international travel last June 15, promised to focus on two key sectors—Energy and Forestry—to reduce its carbon footprint.
“Jamaica’s new NDC is more ambitious than its previous one,” the Jamaican government said in a separate news report, adding that the island needs to be more vigilant with its steps since it’s more prone to hurricanes and sea level rise. There has also been mild drought across much of the island.
According to the government report, Jamaica promises that by 2030, the country will be able to reduce emissions in the two sectors by 25.4% which below “business as usual” (BAU) levels, and by a deeper 28.5% if the country gets international support.
The emissions meanwhile, are expected to fall from 1.8 to 2.0 million tonnes of carbon dioxide also by 2030. That was more ambitious than a decline of 1.1 to 1.5 million tonnes under the original plan.
The post Jamaica first in the Caribbean to submit a tougher climate action plan appeared first on Caribbean News Now!.
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PRESS RELEASE – The Fisheries Division of the Ministry of Blue and Green Economy Agriculture and National Food Security of Dominica continues to explore new ways and alternative methods to agriculture while addressing climate resiliency within the fisheries sector.
Through the UN FAO (Climate Change) CC4FISH Project, which includes the development of the aquaculture industry and introducing the wider population to the concepts of aquaponics, on Monday, June 22, 2020, a nutrient film technique (NFT) aquaponics system was installed within the water feature of the Government Headquarters building.
The water feature is quite spacious, and a Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) aquaponics system was designed within it. Aquaponics involves the soil-less culture of crops, fertilized by fish waste water. The NFT system comprises large PVC pipes, with holes to accommodate plants grown in cups or net pots. Water is then pumped through the pipes, directly supplying the roots of the plants with the requisite nutrients for growth. The continuous flow of water ensures that the roots of the plants are adequately oxygenated.
The materials for the demonstration NFT system were locally sourced and cost approximately 300 XCD. It was installed by an FAO consultant and two fisheries officers. The plants stocked into the system were provided by the Division of Agriculture’s Plant Propagation Unit.
The Government Headquarters building in Roseau contains a water feature complete with ornamental plants and fish including 10 large koi. Given that the building houses eleven (11) ministries/offices and is visited by a wide cross-section of people on a daily basis, it provided the ideal location for a demonstration aquaponics system on the island.
The post Aquaculture & aquaponics becoming mainstream in Dominica appeared first on Caribbean News Now!.
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Belize will open its international airport on August 15, 2020, as part of the country’s five-phase re-opening strategy for tourism.
The opening of Belize City’s Philip Goldman International Airport will kick off Belize’s third phase of re-opening, allowing for further travel relaxation and open entry for chartered flights, private aviation and limited re-opening of international leisure travel with approved hotels.
Belize Tourism Minister Jose Manuel Heredia, has approved enhanced health and safety protocols which serve as the foundation for the destination’s newest “Tourism Gold Standard” Recognition Program for hotels, restaurants and tour operators.
“With Belize having such low population density and being just a short flight away from most major US cities, the destination is well poised for post-Covid-19 travel,” the Belize Tourism Board said.
This nine-point program seeks to enhance the tourism industry’s health and safety standards by adapting new behaviors and procedures to ensure both employees and travelers are confident in the cleanliness and safety of Belize’s tourism product.
Hotels will enforce social distancing and the use of face masks while in public spaces.
Other measures will include the promotion of online check-in and check-out, hand sanitizing stations across the property, enhanced room cleaning and sanitization of public spaces, daily health checks for guests and employees and designated isolation rooms for suspected COVID-19 cases.
The opening of hotels will be in a phased approach, with the first grouping of hotels being those that have achieved the Tourism Gold Standard Certificate of Recognition and those that provide all-inclusive service to guests.
New capacity restrictions have been set for all tourism sites to ensure social distancing can be maintained.
Smaller tour group numbers will limit the number of persons on site and there will be enhanced sanitization of tour equipment.
All travelers to Belize will be required to adhere to health and safety measures implemented by the Government of Belize, which include social distancing, hand sanitization, proper hygiene and the wearing of face masks in public spaces.
Passengers traveling to Belize will be required to download the Belize Health App and complete the required information prior to boarding the flight to Belize.
A QR code with a unique ID number will be allocated to each passenger, and will be used for contact tracing while in Belize.
Passengers are encouraged to take a COVID-19 PCR test within 72 hours of travel to Belize, and those that provide certification of a negative test result will be allowed immediate entry via a “fast track” lane.
Passengers that do not provide a negative COVID-19 test must test upon arrival at their own expense.
A negative result will allow entry, while a positive result will place the passenger in mandatory quarantine for a minimum period of fourteen days at their expense.
The post Belize Is Reopening for Tourism in August appeared first on Caribbean Journal.
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