Environment

The potential to generate 65 GWh of electricity from cane straw is achievable, according to the Mauritius Sugarcane Industry Research Institute (MSIRI) and according to ecologists this would substitute at least 45,000 tonnes of coal.

 Prime Minister Pravind  Jugnauth has said that the Government has renewed its offer to enter into a long-term arrangement with the United States to ensure the continued operation of the defence facility in Diego Garcia.

In a statement to the House, Mr Jugnauth pointed out that “such an arrangement would be consistent with the common vision and shared principles of Mauritius and the United States in respect of the rule of law and the United States’ historical support for decolonization.” 

Relevant authorities are currently undertaking the continuation of a control exercise of the Mauritian Fruit bats that started in 2019.

The Mauritian Fruit bats are classified as a protected wildlife species under the Native Terrestrial Biodiversity  and National Parks Act 2015 and that its population has increased over the years to attain an estimated figure of 106 218 in 2019.

Under section 36 of the Native Terrestrial Biodiversity  and National Parks Act 2015, provision is made for the setting up of a technical committee for the purpose of controlling wildlife in Mauritius, that may advise for the control of any wildlife species in the national interest when a species has attained a pest status.

The special technical committee last met on 11 December 2019, and recommended that 10% of the total estimated population is to be controlled, and the exercise was proposed for 2019 and 2020. Control exercise was carried out on a smaller scale in specific sites in December 2019 and some 1709 bats were controlled.

In a “Family Planning and Demographic Yearbook 2019” that provides data on population trends and vital rates, family planning and health service points for the islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues released Friday, the government indicated that the population of Mauritius is ageing due to sustained low fertility level and increasing life expectancy, which in turn is resulting in lower proportion of children and higher proportion of elders in the population.

According to this document, Mauritius is also witnessing a progressive ageing of its older population; and life expectancy at birth has improved considerably and is expected to improve further over the years.

A Climate Change Bill will be introduced soon into the National Assembly. The main object of the Bill is to implement, with a view to addressing the adverse effects of climate change and developing Mauritius into a greener economy, the obligations of Mauritius under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement and any other related instrument on climate change. The Bill also establishes a legal framework towards making Mauritius a climate-change resilient and low emission country.

The first Civic Amenity Centre (dechetterie) will be operational at La Chaumière by November 2020, thus setting the pace to moving towards a circular economy as announced in Budget Speech 2020-2021. A Civic Amenity Centre is essentially a facility whereby households and small and medium enterprises can dispose of specific types of wastes, which normally are not collected as part of the normal waste collection service. It consists of containers/bays for temporary storage of different sorted waste fractions whereby recyclers collect the ‘waste’ materials for further processing.

The making of Mauritius a plastic-free island is on. Sensitisation campaigns would be launched on 15 October 2020 by the Ministry of Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change, in line with the measure announced in the Government Programme 2020-2024 to make Mauritius a plastic free country. To ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the Environment Protection Regulations, a mass sensitisation campaign would be undertaken as from 15 October 2020 up to April 2021 whereby, information regarding the banned products, alternatives available and penalty for offences under the Regulations would be widely disseminated.

Fines applicable for offences of littering and illegal dumping in four Local Authorities will be aligned with that of the Local Government Act 2011 and to the Local Government (Dumping and Waste Carriers) Regulations 2003 being amended to provide for tougher penalties for the offences of littering and illegal dumping as well as additional technical specifications and new conditions being attached to the issue of a Waste Carrier Licence.

Beach Management Plans

The Beach Management Plans at Mont Choisy, Belle Mare, Flic en Flac and La Prairie public beaches will be implemented in phases.

The amenities would comprise among others, vigilance towers, parking facilities with surface drainage system, public toilets, kiosks/gazebos, main garbage bins, litter bins, benches and picnic tables, LED solar lighting system, open showers, open gyms and landscaping works.

The Government has announced that it will set up Health Promotion Clubs in all ministries and departments of the public service to encourage public officers to practice regular physical activity and adopt healthy eating habits.

The Health Promotion Clubs would establish a calendar of activities and sensitise public officers about the benefits of regular physical activity, good eating habits and provide them with regular health and nutrition tips to lead a healthier lifestyle.