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MHPM_Boundary of the Cockpit Country and the Cockpit Country Protected Area Page
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Mr. Speaker, to ensure the effective management of the Cockpit Country
Protected Area and in recognition of the rights of private landowners, the
Government intends to continue to partner with private landowners, local
groups and other stakeholders, including the Accompong Maroons, in the
development of a
comprehensive management plan
for the area.
Implementation of this Plan will require dedicated resources from the national
budget as well as donor support. This Management Plan will be subject to
Cabinet approval; following which it will be tabled in Parliament.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to encourage private
landowners with forest, within the environs of the Cockpit Country to take
advantage of the incentive of remission of property tax, provided in the Forest
Act by declaring these forested lands as forest reserves or forest management
areas.
Mr. Speaker, one of the major points of discussion over the Cockpit Country has
been the issue of mining. Mr. Speaker, the Government is declaring that
no
mining will be permitted in the Cockpit Country Protected Area.
In this regard,
the Mining Act and any existing mining licences will be amended to close these
areas to mining. The Government is of the view that this area is too valuable in
terms of its ecological and hydrological importance and uniqueness to allow
mining which may result in permanent and irreversible harm and deprive future
generations of the benefit of this national asset. Mr. Speaker, while we will forgo
the exploitation of millions of tonnes of high grade bauxite and limestone with
potential earnings of billions of United States dollars; we cannot put a price tag
on the loss to our water resources and biodiversity.
(See Slide Map 7 – Existing
Mining Licences)