BEWARE OF MULLINS BEACH AREA

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So, the last few days have been stiflingly hot with little or no breeze except from out of the southwest. The only way to get cool for a few minutes has been to go for a swim. This blogger was taking such a dip in the sea today around noon and all was going swimmingly until I noticed a foul chemical odor in the water and noticed that it had turned milky. I decided that something bad was happening and that I needed to get out of the water as quickly as possible. It was then that I noticed a juvenile turtle sticking its head out of the milky water in the nearshore area as if it were suffocating and/or struggling to to leave the area. I have never seen the sea look like this before except after prolonged heavy rains - and we have not seen a drop of rain for several days.

It was only after complaining to relatives visiting from the UK and USA who had gone about two hundred yards up the beach to Mullins that I learned of the source of the discharge - the JADA construction site opposite the Texaco Service Station in Road View, St. Peter. I was swimming in JADA's swill. This blog has reported on construction discharge being pumped untreated into the ocean before at the site of The Palazatte in Lower Road View. Apparently, those complaints have either fallen on death ears in the offices of the-powers-that-be in environment and coastal management, "cat got [their] tongue," or even more sinister - in the proverbial words of the old people - "duppie know who to frighten."

Mullins Beach Warning

Until this water is tested and certified by some eco-labeling organisation such as Blue Flag you swim at your own risk anywhere in the Mullins Bay area - that includes bathers and watersports enthusiasts from the prestigious Royal Westmoreland Beach Club on Mullins Beach. What you see in these pictures is scary enough but what you can't see may be even more dangerous for your health and the environment.

See also:

- St. Peter's Bay Admits Failure Of Groynes
- Selling Our Birthright For A Mess Of Pottage
-Click here for more pictures