CCMI Statement – April 2025 Public Referendum on Developing Cruise Berthing Infrastructure in the Cayman Islands

The Cayman Islands and its gorgeous beaches have been built over tens of millions of years by the stony limestone skeletons of millions of coral reef organisms. It is these corals and skeletal organisms that break down from natural physical and biological processes to produce the sand on our beaches. The longer-term impact of the proposed cruise berthing infrastructure and the associated activities that could impact Cayman’s coastline and marine environment require careful consideration. It is possible that activities such as removal of depositional material, which is an important part of the overall sand budget and contributes to the formation of the beaches, Cayman’s most iconic tourism product, could have substantial detrimental effect.

The environment of the Cayman Islands is an intrinsic part of the identity of the islands and critical to the lives, livelihoods, and lifestyles of Cayman citizens and residents. The Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI) maintains that development and a healthy environment are not mutually exclusive. Effective environmental management does not hinder growth; it is arguably the most important element to ensure continued growth for the future of the Cayman Islands. However, with minimal available information about the plans for cruise berthing infrastructure, ensuring that these plans include environmental considerations and voting without this information is challenging.

At present, little to no information about what the cruise berthing project might look like is in the public domain. To date, no draft plans covering location, size, scope, and environmental impact have been released. It is CCMI’s belief that all government and private entities should have a full understanding regarding the impact of human activities on precious coral reef ecosystems and the potential cascading effect that damaging coral reefs will have on our oceans.

With the current information available, it is not possible to make an informed and evidence-based decision that adequately considered the trade-offs between environmental damage and development to ensure the best outcome for the people of the Cayman Islands.

Issues such as coral bleaching and loss and extensive coastal erosion are at the forefront of many Cayman Islands residents at this time. These pressures that threaten key economic sectors and ways of life in our islands only increase the need for evidence-based decision making, informed by expert scientific advice, to ensure that short-term developmental gain is not prioritised over the long-term well-being of a society that is underpinned by its environment in so many ways.

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