Rise Up Sweet Island


Great Guana Cay is a thin, six mile island in the Northern Bahamas.

The island's inhabitants, who settled here 200 years ago, are employed in fishing and cottage industry tourism.

The island's coral reef is of international importance as one of the most intact surviving elkhorn/staghorn coral communities in the world.

The inhabitants began fighting tooth and nail to save their island's coral reef and mangroves from destruction after hearing of plans for a golf megadevelopment on their tiny barrier reef island.

Hundreds of the world's most revered coral reef scientists and marine ecologists, as well as almost every single Bahamian environmental organization, have banded together to try to stop the Baker's Bay Golf & Ocean Club (Discovery Land Company) from realizing completion.

The proposed 585 unit, 180 slip marina, tennis courts, hotel, destination spa and championship golf course were pushed through the Bahamian central government with no local consent and without proper permits in a land grab (including of local public land designated for use by Bahamians) of unbelievable proportion. In one of the most amazing and unique environmental stories in history, the islanders have brought the developer, and the Bahamian government, to task. The small island is now waging a bitter legal battle with the government and the developers.

Rise Up Sweet Island compiles the viewpoints of the Bahamian and international marine conservation community and presents documents, evidence and history for all interested parties.

Notes from the Road is a travelogue which covers environmental and cultural issues around North America, the Caribbean and Europe.

Thousands of coral scientists, conservationists and environmentalists have publicly voiced support for the locals of Great Guana Cay, including scientists at the Sierra Club, University of Miami, Greenpeace, Center for Biological Diversity, Global Coral Reef Alliance and more.
No independent scientists or conservation groups support the position of Baker's Bay Club.
National Geographic
National Geographic Magazine supports anti-Megadevelopment movements in Abaco and Bimini in new article on shark conservation.

ReEarth
SharkLab
Restrict Bimini Bay
Mangrove Action Project
Global Coral Reef Alliance
Caribbean Conservation Corps
Notes from the Sea

You've probably heard people talk about conservation...the natural resources of our vast continent are not inexaustible. But if we will use our riches wisely, if we will protect our wildlife and protect our wildlife and preserve our lakes and streams, these things will last us for generations to come. - Walt Disney.

Premier Cruiselines became the official Disney cruise line between 1983 and 2000. The company was formed from Greyhound Bus Company, and concentrated primarily on cruises to the Bahamas.

In 1995, Disney severed the relationship with Premier, and so Premier formed a relationship with the Looney Tunes characters, but without Disney, they quickly began to suffer.

The famous 'Big Red Boat' or 'Disney's Big Red Boat', was operated by Premier.

Premier collapsed in September 2000.

Premier and Disney had a relationship which brought both of them to Great Guana Cay. The relationship caused massive environmental damage, but the story has largely remained untold. Disney seems to believe they are not responsible for what happened during this time. This page attempts to recreate the entire history of what happened on Great Guana Cay during the Premier and Disney days, so that researchers interested in this subject have a starting point.

When Premier came to Great Guana Cay in 1989, it was the first project in Abaco that met genuine resistance. Dave Ralph writes for the Abaconian, "The first development which generated some resistance was the arrival of the Premier Cruise Line to Baker’s Bay on the north end of Guana Cay in 1989. "

He continues, "Preparations included the dredging of a channel and a turning basin for the cruise boat. The world’s second largest dredge arrived in 1988 and began work. A small group of dissidents attempted to stop the dredge but were frustrated in their small boats by its massiveness. The discharge pipe extended a half a mile out the back and was immune to their picket line. A cutting head on the front extended 30 feet into the water quietly cutting the rock below. Court action to stop an operation of this magnitude was unheard of...As forecast by those with a knowledge of the area, the operation closed when the lease expired, and the company reviewed the lost days when weather closed the Whale Cay Channel."

 

Rise Up Sweet Island - the Epic Struggle between the residents of Great Guana Cay and the Baker's Bay Club Golf Resort

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