A new review of Graeme Hall Swamp pulls together all of the available written information on this important natural heritage site. It shows that a great deal of information has been acquired over the decades, and provides a gateway to that information. It is available free online to read or download. The review ranges through history, physical description of the area, studies of water, plants, animals, social and economic assessment. It includes accounts of various impacts and management initiatives, as well as the controversies that have mired management over the years.
The Graeme Hall Swamp is the last remaining complete coastal wetland ecosystem of its kind in Barbados, and the desire to have the Graeme Hall Swamp established and managed as a nature reserve for the benefit of the Barbadian public has been evident since at least the 1960s. As tourism became more prominent in the 70s and 80s, the potential for tourism use increasingly became a part of the rationale for establishing a nature reserve there.
Despite many studies and some notable initiatives such as the establishment of the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary (GHNS) in 1998 and Graeme Hall Swamp having been declared as a Wetland of International Significance under the Ramsar Convention in 2006, the GHS continues to be a problem area rather than the vibrant nature reserve initially envisaged. This has been largely due to impacts from the South Coast Sewage Treatment Plant which has consistently discharged preliminary treated sewage into the swamp. The impacts of this contamination were exacerbated by natural sand accretion resulting in the dramatic widening of Worthing Beach which at that time impeded tidal exchanges between the swamp and the sea resulting in Graeme Hall Swamp transitioning towards a freshwater ecosystem.
As we move towards 2030, the year in which the Sustainable Development Goals are supposed to be met, and with the global targets of conserving at least 30 per cent of terrestrial, inland water, and marine and coastal areas, especially those of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem function, the imperative to preserve GHS is stronger than ever. The authors, a group of well-known individuals from a range of organisations, are hopeful that planned initiatives to establish Graeme Hall Swamp formally as a Natural Heritage Conservation Area will be fruitful and that it will be established in time to contribute to meeting the 2030 target.
Please see article here: https://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/cermes/docs/technical_reports/mahon_et_al_2025_graeme_hall_swamp_review_ctr_110.aspx
Professor Robin Mahon, CERMES, UWI
