January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
SDOs seen by government as vital tools to help economy
Environment Minister Walter Roban said this Government was the first administration to open up the SDO process to debate in the House.
And he defended the use of the orders – designed for issues of urgent national importance — on tourism developments.
James Whittaker submitted a series of questions to the Minister based on concerns raised by environmentalists and others about the use of SDOs. Here’s how he responded.
SDOs have been used 26 times in the past ten years for major developments. Critics argue that is too many for something that is supposed to be for ‘national interest’ projects only. Do you agree they have been overused?
The Minister does not comment on SDOs that were granted before he became the Minister responsible for issuing them.
Most of the developments (17) have been tourism related. Isn’t it a bit of a stretch to use the future of tourism as the justification for using SDOs so frequently?
SDO’s are a legitimate tool to address planning issues. The Development and Planning Act under section 15, anticipates that there will be conflicts between the zonings applied by the Bermuda Plan and the wider community interests and in an effort to provide a Government with the means to address those issues, special Development Orders can be issued.
Another thing that must be understood here is the importance of tourism to Bermuda’s survival – it is one of the pillars of our economy, and generates thousands of jobs for our restaurateurs, sports and leisure operators, taxi drivers, retail stores… the list is endless.
To stress how important tourism is to Bermuda’s wellbeing we only have to look at findings from 2009 which show us that in that year tourism directly contributed $231million to our GDP; and visitors spent $350 million in Bermuda that year alone. Competition for tourists has become ever more sophisticated and focused, as travel destinations vie with one another for limited tourism dollars to attract and maintain a traveller who is now even more discerning on where they choose to spend their leisure time. We should never underestimate the importance tourism plays in our economy’s sustainability.
If an SDO can be used any time a hotel developer wants to build, doesn’t that undermine the Bermuda Plan and the safeguards it puts in place to protect open spaces?
In fact an SDO cannot be used “every time a hotel wants to develop” and this has not been the case thus far. The Reefs development is just one example. They must all be considered on an individual basis.
Government has now used or attempted to use SDOs or other planning procedures to allow building at the Botanical Gardens (hospital), Tuckers Point, Southlands, Warwick Long Bay… Is it fair to say that the environment is pretty low on the list of priorities compared with hotel and housing development?
The first point to note is that you are incorrect with your statement here that an SDO was ever presented to allow building infringement on the Botanical Gardens with the new hospital. It was not.
Also, in regard to this question, we can name numerous examples whereby Government is prioritizing the environment. For example, the Premier’s decision to group Planning with Environment in the same Ministry, firstly, shows how this Government recognizes the importance of these two Departments working together – with each other, rather than against each other. Secondly, we only have to look at the work of the Sustainable Development Unit and the Department of Energy to see how the protection of the environment is a top priority.
The progress that has been made with regard to the Sargasso Sea Alliance and the significance this has to our marine environment and the whole Atlantic region is a sign of our priority to this area.
Look also to the soon-to-be-released Energy White Paper which reflects our objective to reduce the dependence on fossil fuel and its negative impacts.
Expanding further, Government also recently participated in Earth Hour and the Department of Environmental Protection has been tireless in its work in educating fishermen on catch sizes and the new Fisheries Regulations to protect our fish stock. Government’s creation of the Community Areas Programme, which has placed parks throughout neighbourhoods is also worthy of mention, as is the work of the Parks Department to maintain our National Parks and the work of Conservation Services to conduct research on and protect our native and endemic habitats…the list goes on.
Hence, the Environment is clearly not low on Government’s ‘priorities list’.
Do you agree that we need a clearer criteria for how SDOs can and should be used?
We do in fact have very clear criteria for how SDOs should be used. The process includes: A developer, not only a hotel developer, making a case to have an SDO granted; a wide-ranging consideration by Cabinet to determine whether or not there is a national interest involved, and an assessment of the pros and cons associated with the proposal against the benchmark of national interest; a consideration of the impact of the proposal on Bermuda’s environmental, social and economic sustainability; an analysis by technical officers of conditions that should be attached to an Order. Should a decision be taken to grant it; consideration by Cabinet of technical officers’ recommendations; a decision by Cabinet to grant or not grant the requested Order; finalization of the technical considerations involved in drafting the Order; then passage through the legislative process via parliamentary and public scrutiny.
Do you agree that there should be some method (other than protesting on the Cabinet lawn) for Bermudians to have a say when an SDO is used to change zoning? (Note - we are aware that the DAB will review the planning applications from TP - however the SDO has changed the zoning - the DAB can’t reverse that)
The Order will be subject to public scrutiny through the legislative process. Governments use various methods to develop policy on this. Some of those methods include varying degrees of public consultation at various stages of the policy development process. Thus, a Government can determine to what degree and at what stage they will seek public input into the development of a policy position. This Government, for the first time, has opened up the process of a grant of an SDO to public scrutiny. No other Government in Bermuda has ever done that.
Special report: Special Development Orders
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