Chacachacare, the Amerindian word for cotton island, was so named because of the lush cotton plantations that once covered that small island.
However, today, the historic location looks more like a trash island. Where cotton once flourished there are now mounds of garbage, dilapidated buildings and general scenes of squalor.
Neglect and decay were evident across the island when a Guardian Media visited the island last week with Jonathan De La Rosa and Stephen Broadbridge, of the T&T Incoming Tour Operators Association. Broadbridge also owns and operates Caribbean Discovery Tours and is a co-founder of the environmental group, Papa Bois Conservation, while De La Rosa owns Island Yacht Charters, a fishing tour group.
Chacachacare, the westernmost of the Bocas Islands which belong to T&T, has a rich history. Amerindians, Venezuelan rebels, lepers and US soldiers all inhabited the island at different times. Since the last leper on the island died in 1984, the hospital, doctors quarters and nuns’ station have been empty.
Over the past 35 years, with no arrangements in place for maintenance, the buildings have crumbled into ruins. The doctors’ quarters, which are the most accessible buildings from the water, have been vandalised and eroded by age and the sea over the years.
However, while there are no residents on the island, evidence of recent human activity can be seen in the mounds of garbage and decades of filth that now choke the island.
The jetty leading to the nuns’ station has collapsed and De La Rosa was unable to get his boat safely to the concrete to disembark.
When De La Rosa brought his boat to a stop at the main jetty on the island, a silence descended interrupted only by the gentle lapping of waves
That sense of serenity quickly faded due to the discarded bottles and burnt out barrels that littered the jetty. Further on, it got worse with dirty mattresses, hundreds of bottles, mounds of styrofoam containers and more burnt-out barrels covering the entire area.
An asphalt road leading from the jetty to the lighthouse on the island was the only place not covered in garbage.
Broadbridge pointed out a bay hidden by a grove of trees. Here too, signs of human activity marred whatever beauty the spot once held.
“On this same beach several weeks ago, we saw hawksbill turtles hatching. This island is a very special place, you can snorkel and see turtles, angelfish and dolphins frolicking in the bay,” Broadbridge said.
He blames the squalid conditions on the island on the Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA).
“This is a site that we have been using for tourism for a long time and it has reached an all-time low with garbage being dumped on it and there is a total absence of any management, or of the CDA doing any of the clean-ups they used to do years ago when Danny Solomon was the CDA chairman. The present CDA is doing absolutely nothing. We can’t even get them on the telephone so the garbage is just piling up,” he complained
In addition to conducting tours for tourists, Broadbridge has taken university students to Chacachacare for field research.
“The island is very different from the Northern Range. Its a lot drier and there are a lot of creatures that come across from Venezuela here, different birds that are seen here that can’t be found on the mainland at all. It is a fantastic opportunity for tourism because there are a lot of old US military installations as well,” he said
Broadbridge said he would now feel ashamed to take visitors to the island.
“All these wonderful attractions are useless if we have to walk our tourist through garbage,” he said.
I will not face the embarrassment of bringing my visitors here anymore. I cannot face the embarrassment of walking them through this La Basse anymore.”
He said trying to get an audience with the CDA board about the island has been unsuccessful.
“They are fully aware of the situation but it is very difficult to get through to them. There is no transparency and there is no interest in doing any kind of management. It has been getting worse and worse every year for the last three years,” Broadbridge said.
De La Rosa, who once delighted in taking visitors to the island said both the CDA and visitors must bear the blame for its current state. In his busy season, he said, he is out at sea seven days a week, taking tourists to tarpon fish.
“My visitors spend most of their time on the boat but while we are out here, the tides bring in a lot of garbage, so a lot of times we are out here among petroleum, oil, fuel, garbage, plastic and we end up in the middle of all that fishing,” he said.
“People are usually despondent. They wonder where it all came from because a lot of the places that they come from they don’t see that kind of garbage.”
De La Rosa believes enforcement of litter laws and education on the effects of littering on the environment need to go hand-in-hand.
“People need to be more aware of what they are doing, they need to be more accountable. We need more passionate people on these boards, people that actually care about the environment and want to make a difference. A lot of them get into office and nothing gets done, people need to be on the ground,” he said.
“I don’t know when is the last time anyone from the CDA has been down here checking on these islands. I don’t think they have been here for a while because I can’t imagine they would leave it in this condition.”
At one of the hidden bays, the beachfront is clean but stepping off the sand means wading through plastic, styrofoam and human excrement.
“That is from the campers. Easter weekend just passed and we are seeing a lot of garbage,” De La Rosa said.
“It’s 2019 people must be aware of the environment and leaving plastic and garbage is a no-no. There needs to be more accountability from both sides, from the CDA, who manages these islands and people who come here to camp.”
On the return journey to Chaguaramas, De La Rosa spotted a school of frolicking dolphins and stopped the boat so we could watch them. It was one of the few bright spots of the trip.
Efforts to speak with officials Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA) about the state of Chacachacare have so far been unsuccessful.
About Chacachacare
Originally named El Caracol (the Snail) by Christopher Columbus because of its shape. At various times in its history, Chacachacare has served as a cotton plantation, a whaling station and a leper colony.
The island was spotted by Columbus on his third New World voyage in August 1498, and his little fleet spent the night anchored in Monkey Harbour.
The island later became a nuns quarters and a leper colony. In 1942, 1,000 U.S. Marines were stationed on Chacachacare and built barracks on the island.
In 1999, Donald Trump visited Chacachacare during the Miss Universe contest and contemplated having a casino and hotel built on the island. The idea has not been pursued, however.