In the absence, once again, of any representatives from the Department of Environment, government officials and the bidders made incredible claims about coral relocation and regrowth, which many experts have called into question.

But with no one from Cayman’s own pool of environmental experts at the Mary Miller Hall on Tuesday evening to counter the claims, the conservation concerns surrounding this project were dismissed by cruise executives and other sub-contractors involved in the Verdant Isle Port Partners. The company contracted to deal with the coral relocation claimed that they would be replacing the coral some ten times over.

Once cruise line executive went on to suggest that there will not be a net loss at all, as they will be moving and regrowing coral in such abundance. This claim is based on the work of Dr David Vaughn, who uses what is known as micro-fragmentation in an effort to regrow and relocate coral.

While this is a relatively new and promising technique, the concept that the existing ancient, diverse and pristine reefs in the George Town Harbour can be moved and regrown elsewhere in a short period of time, as claimed, is questioned by other experts, including those based at the Central Caribbean Marine Institute on Little Cayman.

Throughout the evening, however, the massive challenges regarding relocation of reefs and the Wreck of Balboa were constantly diminished. The Verdant Isle representatives claimed they would move the Balbao piece by piece and that the Wreck of the Cali would not be impacted.

When members of the public asked where the DoE representatives were, they were told that it was not appropriate for that government expert agency to be there. Peter Granger, from the government’s Major Projects Office, who will be overseeing this controversial project if it does move forward, said the DoE did not need to be at the meeting because the bidders were now preparing the details of an environmental scoping exercise looking at the need for an EIA. The results of that would go to the DoE, he said.

“It would be inappropriate for the DoE to be here at this point,” Granger declared.

The DoE were also absent at the last public meeting, which left government unable to answer many questions the public had about the environmental issues impacting this project. They were also removed from the steering committee part way through the procurement process.

The DoE director and her team’s unequivocal message about the impact this project will have on the marine life in the harbour and the absolute necessity for a new EIA is clearly at odds with the current desire of the Verdant Isle group to take on such an undertaking.

An official stated that the scoping exercise now underway will examine the new plans and previous EIA to see how different things are and whether or not a completely new EIA will be needed.