Newell Disputes Samuda Claim That Firewood Cutting Is Jamaica's Main Mangrove Threat

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Opposition Spokesman on Environment and Climate Resilience Omar Newell has pushed back against recent remarks by Environment Minister Matthew Samuda, who described unlawful tree cutting for firewood as the leading threat to Jamaica's mangroves. Newell argues that position does not align with findings in the Government's National Mangrove and Swamp Forest Management Plan 2023–2033.

The dispute follows a Jamaica Observer report on June 15 quoting Samuda as saying, "The biggest issue affecting our mangroves is the illegal cutting of them to be used for firewood." Addressing the Rotaract District 7020 Conference at Ocean Coral Spring Resort in Trelawny last Friday, Samuda added, "If you don't reduce poverty, mangroves become charcoal, and that's where we have significant degradation of our mangrove forest — not from housing developments or commercial developments."

Newell accepts that unauthorised mangrove harvesting is against the law and must be tackled. Even so, he said the administration's own records identify development-related activity as a major source of wetland decline.

"The minister's comments are extremely troubling, especially in a post-Hurricane Melissa Jamaica, considering the important role mangroves play in protecting our coastal communities during storms," Newell said in a statement issued Wednesday.

Referring to the national management plan, he noted that about 19.56 per cent of Jamaica's mangrove losses have been tied to tourism, commerce and transportation. "The Government's own report states clearly that most mangrove losses were related to tourism development. These are not Opposition figures. They are findings contained in an official national management plan that is available to the minister and his ministry," he said.

Newell also pointed out that the minister's remarks were reportedly made at a site where healthy mangroves were cleared during earlier phases of the resort's development.

"I am concerned that the public is being encouraged to focus primarily on vulnerable Jamaicans seeking a livelihood, while official reports point to development activities as the major documented source of mangrove loss. Environmental accountability cannot be reserved for the poor while the larger drivers of environmental degradation receive less scrutiny," he continued.

He stressed that Jamaica's mangrove forests are among the country's most critical natural assets for climate resilience, shielding coastlines from storm surge, erosion and worsening climate impacts. "In the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, Jamaicans understand better than ever that mangroves are not simply trees along the coastline. They are part of our national defence against climate disasters," Newell said.

Newell added that as steward of large portions of Jamaica's forested wetlands, the Government has a duty to ensure policy and public messaging rest on evidence. "The protection of our mangroves requires honesty, consistency and a willingness to confront every source of destruction. Whether the threat comes from illegal cutting or from large-scale development, the standard must be the same."

He is urging Minister Samuda to clarify his statements and publicly accept the findings of the National Mangrove and Swamp Forest Management Plan 2023–2033 so the national discussion can be shaped by facts rather than what he called "selective narratives."

"Jamaicans deserve an environmental policy that follows the facts. We cannot ignore the findings of our own national management plan while placing disproportionate blame on those with the least economic power in our society," Newell said. "If we are serious about protecting our mangroves, we must be equally serious about confronting the principal documented causes of their destruction."