JET along with some great people in Treasure Beach (i'm sure there are others island wide) are doing what they can to help protect the sea turtles. I have heard stories about turtle hunting and gathering of eggs (as they fall from the female's body, still soft) that have made me so upset. I tell the people that tell me these stories these animal are in danger, hopefully some of my words sink in.

According to JET the penalty for harming/killing a sea turtle is is J$100,000 or 12 months in jail. The spokesperson for JET has said on treasurebeach.net that the penatlies are much too often not enforced.

The community of Treasure Beach has started a turtle conservation group. They teach the young children about the turtles in school. They are holding classes to educate the adults too. Along with posting signs on the beaches. So far there are a handful of citizens who are monitoring nesting sites, covering tracks, and helping protect the eggs.

Here is an clipping from one of the threads on treasurebeach.net

The Jamaica Environment Trust in collaboration with the Treasure Beach Turtle Group and the National Environment and Planning Agency with funding from the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica has been working with the Treasure Beach Turtle Group to monitor beaches in Treasure Beach.

One project output is the installation of a sign in the community. This sign will inform community members about the importance of sea turtles, the laws governing their protection in Jamaica and the penalties associated with their take/harassment. The sign will be installed in Billy's Bay. If funding allows we hope to include other beaches in Treasure Beach.

We thank the Treasure Beach Turtle Group for their great work with us on this project.

A wonderful community member in TB wrote this about a month ago:

I was at home in Old Wharf this evening when one of the men working on the construction site called me. He told me that he saw some guys dragging something down the beach that he believed was a turtle. I raced down to the public beach in Old Wharf and there was a group of people clustered around something. I guess by the speed with which I drove up and the fact that I was running toward them, scared off the 'boys' that were there. You can not imagine my disgust at what I saw. They had trussed up a huge female with wire around her flippers and had dragged it on it's back over the coral shore from Tranquility Bay to Old Wharf. Luckily it was still alive and thanks to Nickel, Sheldon, Jason and some of their friends they untied it and released it. When you see this magnificent animal make it's way into the water to freedom you have to wonder what kind of person could bring themselves to slaughter it.

If anyone sees anyone disturbing a turtle nest or capturing a turtle please call me. If this leads to me catching them in the act, I will provide a $5000 dollar reward to the caller. This poster left her phone number but I did not include it on this quote.

Today that same person wrote:

We paid out our first reward of $5000 on Friday to someone who called me about a captured turtle in Great Bay and I can say that I have never been so happy to pay $5000 as I was that morning. I got a call around 6:00 a.m and went over there immediately. By the time I got there, the villagers from Great Bay had already rescued it from it's captor and were helping it out to sea. Big thanks to the caller and huge big up to the people of Great Bay who saved it. Again, it just shows that the majority of people in the area are very very conscious of protecting these incredible animals.

If you are interested in reading more go to treasurebeach.net and do a search for Turtle or turtle monitoring.

I think this is a great start of something good. Education is the key!

It was also brought up that if a person knows they can get $5000j for the return of a sea turtle from it's captor, who's to say people won't start catching them for the reward money? The response was, the person offering the reward money would have to know who is the guilty person before handing over the cash.

Do you guys know of any other groups like this on other parts of the island? Have any of you been so lucky to see a sea turtle in the water in Jamaica? I know I'd love to.

wish it would work, all i know is the folk eat the eggs, their hunger overrides the preservation...i hate it, but, how hungry are we...and the killing of these huge beauties, like big table size, i get sick to my belly...one person at a time...everyone needs to eat...it is hard to get that past anyone.

I remember years ago when Office of Nature wasn't there,there would be turtles there all the time.Some locals would catch them and just split the shell open with a machete and that would be that.Where I fish we see turtles quite offen.I think they are Leatherbacks.

LMBO @ rastapher and jeannieb!!!!