THE EDITOR, Madam:Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are an important tool used to help government decide whether a new project, like a hotel or a road, should be approved. When done properly, they help decision-makers understand what impact a project might have on the environment, people’s health, and community life before any final decision is made. Yet Jamaica still does not have formal, legally binding rules for how EIAs must be done.While guidelines exist, they do not have the force of law and there is no mandatory requirement for an EIA, however significant the project. Instead, the system mostly depends on provisions in the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA) Act (1991), and the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) decides if an EIA is needed. Requirements for public consultation vary between projects and it is sometimes unclear when or how the public can take part in decisions about developments that affect their communities. On occasion, large developments have been granted environmental permits without an EIA being required, for example the Pinnacle in Montego Bay.This gap in the regulatory framework is not new. The Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) first submitted detailed recommendations on EIA regulations in 2011. More than a decade later, the regulations remain unfinished, despite multiple commitments to complete them, including under Jamaica’s Open Government Partnership National Action Plan for both the 2021–2023 and 2024–2026 cycles.JET has now submitted updated recommendations. These include simple, clear rules for how EIAs should be done, how the public should be informed and involved, and how decisions should be monitored and enforced. These are intended to support the creation of a transparent, predictable, and effective EIA system. It is long past time to complete this vital task.

JAMAICA ENVIRONMENT TRUST