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Submitted by admin on 3 December 2019

This policy will be adopted in order to promote the management of coastal wetlands so as to ensure that the many benefits they provide are sustained. The goals of the policy include:

  • Ensuring that Jamaicans are aware and committed people to their environment;
  • Establishing guidelines by which wetlands can be developed and protected in order to ensure their continued existence;
  • Bringing to an end all activities carried on in wetlands that cause damage to these resources and encouraging benign activities;
  • Maintaining and enhancing the functions and values of Jamaica's wetland resources;
  • Maintaining the natural diversity of the animals and plants found in wetlands;
  • Integrating of wetland functions in planning and development process of other resource sectors for example agriculture, forestry, fisheries, tourism and waste management and housing.
  • Specifically, the policy seeks to:
  • Provide protection against dredging, filling, and other development;
  • Designate wetlands as protected areas;
  • Protect wetlands from pollution particularly industrial effluent sewage and sediment;
  • Ensure that all developments planned for wetlands are subject to an environmental impact assessment (EIA);
  • Ensure that where appropriate traditional uses of wetlands are maintained
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