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The Volcano Executive Group (VEG) met on Friday 17 February to discuss the recent developments at the Soufriere Hills Volcano.Dr Sue Loughlin, the Director of the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) briefed VEG members on the recent change in activity at the volcano. She told them that on the 7 February there was an episode of almost 40 volcanotectonic earthquakes with dark clouds and near continuous lightning. In addition there was evidence of ash venting. Within the next 48 hours there was a period of broadband tremor with 4 hour repeat times with each successive tremor becoming more energetic.
Dr Loughlin reported that there was an increasing number of long period earthquakes on 9 February and at around 11 pm on that date vigorous ash and steam venting began with roaring sounds similar to jet engines.
The following day observations from the helicopter revealed a laterally directed steam and ash vent on the north side of the crater. Blocks of volcanic material were seen spinning as far as the crater rim. Scientists in the helicopter also glimpsed a new lobe that had begun to develop on the west side of the existing crater. On the morning of the 11 February, scientists could clearly see the new lobe from the MVO.
Over the following days the new lobe became increasingly visible from the MVO and from the Salem and Old Towne areas and it was clearly glowing in the dark. The new lobe was increasing in size and shape suggesting a high extrusion rate. The new lobe is now higher than the dome that has been quietly building over the last 6 or 7 months and is developing in an elongated manner to the northwest of the crater (see photograph, courtesy of MVO).
The MVO has been liasing with members of the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) to produce an interim risk assessment because of this new dome growth. The SAC reported that there has been no major change to the type of hazard presented in their last report but that the level of risk to individual workers in Plymouth had increased to a level of upper low to moderate on the UK Chief Medical Officer’s scale. During the deliberations of the SAC access to Plymouth for mining and tourist operations had been temporary suspended.
At the Friday 17 February meeting, VEG members felt that this risk was at an acceptable level and approved the resumption of commercial mining and shipping activities in Plymouth. This on the understanding that the current activity remains at the present level and that those working in the area follow proper health & safety procedures. MVO staff are available to brief workers in Plymouth on the volcanic hazards and risks posed to workers in Plymouth The restriction on tourist visits into Plymouth is still in force.
The symposium, moderated by Mr Bennette Roach the Editor of the Montserrat Reporter, saw presentations on the issues by Mr Steve Foster the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr Elijah K Silcott the Labour Commissioner, and Mr Kenneth Scotland the President of the Montserrat Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In addition there were two resource persons present, Miss Anne Marie Dewar the Permanent Secretary in the Department of Administration and Miss Jean M Dyer the Crown Counsel in the Attorney General's Chambers.
Following the presentations on the relevant legislation as it pertains to work permits and immigration, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry presented their position on the need to increase Montserrat's population size to ensure economic growth.
The Jamaican and Guyanese communities in Montserrat made presentation from the floor of the meeting and offered suggestions to the officials on how to relieve the bottlenecks in applications for workpermits and extension to stays on the island. These were duly noted and several suggestions will be acted on.
The symposium presented a simple clearly defined picture of what the legal requirements are for entry to the island and for working here. Likewise, the requirements for Permanent Residency and BOTC citizenship were clearly outlined to those assembled.
Many labour matters and grievances were aired including the need for overtime pay, vacation time and the fact that Social Security and Income Tax deductions were not being paid into the relevant authorities on behalf of immigrant workers.
The Hon Minister with responsibilities for Labour, Mrs Idabelle Meade wrapped up the meeting by stating that the relevant matters had been discussed in the symposium in a frank and friendly way and that many of the points and suggestions brought up during the evening will be taken into consideration.
The Governor's Office has donated EC$2500 towards the expenses of taking the team to Antigua. This is to make up the shortfall in monies raised by the students themselves to offset competition expenses.
The Debating Competition, now over 25 years old, is being held at the Cultural Centre in St John's, Antigua on four successive nights commencing on Thursday 23 February. The eight Community College's debators, led by Kamille Winspeare will have the opportunity to take part in the following debates if they get through the first round:
1. Business monopolies have done more harm than good to the development of Caribbean countries;
2. More than other religions, Rastafari best addresses the socio-environmental problems of the Caribbean;
3. The traditional institution of marriage has become outmoded.
The Community College Debating Team has been helped in their preparations by Mr. C.T. John and the college is also hoping to take along a group of student and staff supporters as well as parents to Antigua.
The recently appointed Head of the Overseas Territories Department at the Department for International Development (DFID), Mr Phil Mason visited Montserrat for the first time during the week commencing 13 February. Mr Mason, who has almost 20 years experience with DFID, replaced Clive Warren in the position in December last.During the visit, Mr Mason visited DFID funded projects, met with a variety of Government officials and also talked with DFID staff working on the island. He also held a press conference and met with the leaders of Civil Society at a cocktail party at Governement House which was held in his honour.
Mr Mason reported that he saw very positive signs of recovery in Montserrat and said that he was very impressed with the vision of Little Bay, reiterating DFID's support for what he described as 'this crucial platform for regeneration'. Mr Mason continued 'Now that I think we have an agreement between DFID and the Government of Montserrat (GOM) on a way forward for the Montserrat Development Corporation (MDC), I believe that we can look to a future with some optimism'.
At his press conference, Mr Mason pointed out that DFID's aid to Montserrat in 2006 will be in excess of that in 2005 as over £10 million has been committed to Montserrat for the recurrent budget. The DFID OTD Head stated that he believed Montserrat was moving away from an emergency phase to one of long term restoration of a vibrant and prosperous island.
The programme has awarded a grant of over £21,000 (EC$100,000) for a project to increase the island's capacity to manage protected areas and conserve biodiversity.
The project will produce legislation enabling effective management of protected areas and biodiversity conservation on the island. This process will include four main components, namely:
1. A review of existing local, regional and international legislation;
2. Consultation with stakeholders to identify gaps in existing frameworks and to advise policy change;
3. A revision of environmental legislation to meet identified needs;
4. Outreach to raise awareness of the need for legislative review and to solicit participation in the consultative process.
The resulting framework will enable the establishment of Montserrat's first national park in the Centre Hills, which is home to numerous endangered and endemic species. These include the Montserrat Oriole (Icterus oberi), the Montserrat galliwasp (Dipoglossus montisserrati), the mountain chicken (Leptodactylus fallax), the Montserrat orchid (Epidendrum montserratense) and the endemic shrub (Rondeletia buxifolia).
The disaster tugged at the heart strings of Montserratians who watched the drama unfold on TV and then generously donated over EC$6000 to the special appeal fund set up by the Montserrat Red Cross in support of the victims.
The local Red Cross Branch closed the appeal fund on 1 February 2006 and rounded up the donated contributions to an amount that allowed the purchase of a bank draft of £1,500. This amount was sent to the British Red Cross in London to put with the monies they had raised in the UK for the Asian victims. In all, the British Red Cross raised over £5 million in the appeal.
In a recent letter to Montserrat, Kemi Obidairo the Assistant Desk Officer for South Asia at the British Red Cross Headquarters thanked the people of Montserrat and the local Red Cross for their generous donation. Kemi pointed out that the temperatures in Northern Pakistan, where the bulk of the damage occurred, are continuing to drop and that the Red Cross is working around the clock to deliver tents, blankets and other relief items to the millions still homeless in these harsh winter conditions. The letter pointed out that the difficult terrain in the mountains and the terrible winter conditions are making it extremely difficult to deliver the relief items but the aid workers continue to struggle to relieve the discomfort of the residents in the area.
The Montserrat Red Cross is a branch of the British Red Cross and carried out five major appeals in 2005 to assist victims of disasters in various parts of the world.
Have you ever heard the term TANSTAAFL? No? Well the term refers to the concept that ‘there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch,’ meaning that there is a cost to every decision.
When it comes to managing your finances, you need to make the right choices in order to ensure that you are using your income and resources wisely. All spending decisions have opportunity costs. When you spend today you give up the chance to have goods and services in the future. So, if you buy the new car, your opportunity cost may be the foregone opportunity to have the down payment to purchase a home or to pay for your college education. It is therefore important to determine your priorities when making spending decisions. So when considering your spending choices remember TANSTAAFL. There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch!
Are you living from paycheque to paycheque? Does having no savings make you feel stressed? If so, then there is a solution. The first step is to track your daily expenditures. Yes keep a detailed list of everything you spend for a month or two – from the packs of gum to the lotto tickets to lunch. Jot it down in a notebook or on a piece of paper and keep receipts together in an envelope. At the end of the month, examine your spending and determine how much was needless and where you can cut back to create savings. Tracking every dollar you spend can be a real eye-opener. You will realize how much you are truly spending or those unnecessary purchases and where you could pinch a few pennies and start saving.
Ready to buy a new set of wheels? You probably are looking at that flashy vehicle with the fancy tyres and headlights. Stop! Before you get into the driver’s seat and sign your name on that loan agreement, think about what your needs are and the total cost of your new ride.
Ask yourself, what can I honestly afford? Don’t just think about the cost of the loan, also include the maintenance, insurance and registration costs. If the vehicle you are considering requires high maintenance, can you afford it? How much will it cost to replace the tyres and other parts? How does it stack up in relation to fuel efficiency? The cost to keep your prized vehicle on the road can be overwhelming and even unaffordable if you do not do your homework to ensure that you have a vehicle that fits your budget.
The theme for this year is 'Health and Vitality - the Commonwealth Challenge'. This theme was chosen with the Commonwealth Games in mind The games start on 15 March just two days after Commonwealth Day and will be held in Melbourne, Australia. Her Majesty The Queen will attend the games in her capacity as Head of the Commonwealth. Late last year the Commonwealth Games Baton came to Montserrat as part of its relay journey around the world en route to Melbourne. Montserrat will be represented at the Games.
For Commonwealth Day itself, local schools are expected to carry out activities and Lookout Primary School is expecting to have a Commonwealth lunch on that day to show off dishes from all the Commonwealth nations represented at the school. They are also hoping to have sporting activities to coincide with the opening of the Commonwealth Games in Australia.
The Public Library in Brades is also hoping to stage Commonwealth Day activities.
As part of their 35th anniversary celebrations, the Emerald Community Singers are to tour in the UK during August 2006. All proceeds from their concerts will be donated to the building fund for a new Girl Guides Headquarters in Davy Hill, Montserrat.For the last two years, Girl Guides in Yorkshire and the North East of England have been busy raising funds for their counterparts in Montserrat. The local Girl Guides lost their building to volcanic flows in Plymouth very early in the volcanic crisis and have been homeless ever since. The 150 strong movement in Montserrat have been trying to raise funds for their new Headquarters but the input from the North East Guides will greatly enhance their fundraising.
In Yorkshire, the local Girl Guides work towards their Alliougana Badge, which entails learning all about Montserrat plus it incorporates a fund raising element and it is these funds which will go into the building fund.
The Yorkshire Girl Guides will host the Emerald Community Singers in three venues in the county, Harrogate, York and Scarborough and are busy organising venues for ten concerts during the visit.
Locally, the Girl Guides have the plans for the their new building ready to submit to the Planning Unit and hopefully earthworks will commence as soon as they are approved. The site on Davy Hill has already been cleared by visiting crew members from HMS Richmond and a Building Committee has been established. It is estimated that the first phase of the building will cost in the region of EC$350,000 with overall works nearing $1 million.
The Emerald Community Singers were formed in 1971 and at that time it was recognised that traditional folk songs, stories and dances were fast disappearing from within the island and the wider region as the older folk passed on. The objective of the group is therefore to research and preserve this folk heritage and to present it through performances to a younger generation.
The group has toured Britain in the past (in 2001 for their 30th anniversary) and in addition, the USA, Central America, South America and the wider Caribbean region. They have appeared at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, at the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Houses of Parliament in London and at a variety of music festivals. The group has appeared at countless Caribbean Hotels and on visiting cruise ships. Currently they are enjoying a winter season at the Vue Pointe Hotel where they appear on Wednesday nights.
The Montserratian and Caribbean music that the group performs is, for the most part, engendered on the beautiful islands in the Caribbean Sea but also reflects the Irish heritage of Montserrat. Many of the folk songs that they perform are based on actual occurrences and real people, some still alive or well remembered. These folk themes come out of social situations that existed in and around the West Indian plantations of yesteryear.
The full itinerary for the UK tour will be published in May and all concerts will be held in the month of August 2006.