Pollution and Agression in Martinique - FWI

[bonobo]

On July 31st. we where witness of a deliberated pollution act in Saint Pierre Martinique. Wile taking pictures and video of the act, we where chased , aggressed and insulted ( racially) by local fishermen.
We complained to the local police, contacted the authorities, our consul was needed to make sure the complain was filed !!!
No reaction (yet) as of today from any local or national authority !!

see vidéo on youtube

Agression par des pêcheurs après avoir filmé une pollution marine - YouTube

Will keep updated if any official reactions !!!

[S/V Illusion]

Well that you documented it but your concern might be considered more credible if you had tried cleaning it up or at least collected some as evidence.

I think that is terrible someone would discard such trash in that way but it would have been better to clean it up rather than just to complain about it.

[MarkJ]

I heard about this incident and want to see the video, but my wifi is too slack!

Its weird that the locals are the worst for poluting their own water. killing off the fish with polution is directly affecting their own livelihood.


Mark

[JPA Cate]

Bonobo,

Are there facilities for disposing of the poubelles ashore?

Are you sure the slurs were racial or perhaps against colonials by the underclass?

I know we've been places where yachties are disliked by the fisherfolk; same color, doesn't matter. They don't like us and many yachties look down on them, considering them stupid, uncouth, rude, and low class.

FWIW.

Ann

[Ocean Girl]

Greenpeace, but I cannot find a contact.
Here is a link to some who may help. I'm still working on finding a direct contact for you.

I think you are awesome and brave to film this, thanks!!

[barnakiel]

You were lucky this was Martinique. I am sure many neighbouring nations are much rougher when you film locals doing anything that them and you both know should not be done.

Do not worry about racial or not though: I too got 'offended' this way in Le Marin. I just looked that guy in the eye and said you know what. For I am white and he was black and using these as an offense is, actually, funny.

I think you did the right thing, and I think other cruiser(s) somewhere down the road will get punished for what you did.

That's how world works. Do the right thing. Swallow your pride. Go on.

All the best,
b.

[Ocean Girl]

But we could be the eyes and ears, don't have to be confrontational, just report what we see to an international data base. We cruisers are everywhere, we see chit the dirt dwellers are not even aware is happening. I'm sure there is something out there, some org that documents this kinda stuff. So far, all I find with NOAA, Cousteau society, Marine Debris Center...all I can find is the cookie cutter generic "education, help, fundraising" format, but no way for the people on the ground to report observations of polluters, debris, government inaction, etc.
Sorry for the rant, it is one of my hot buttons.

[MARC D]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Its weird that the locals are the worst for poluting their own water. killing off the fish with polution is directly affecting their own livelihood.


Mark

So true...

We spent 3 weeks anchored in Carlisle Bay, Barbados last year and we have seen a continuous stream of plastic scrap floating out of the small river near Bridgetown.
All the locals seems to think of the water as a huge refusal container. Old habits I guess.

[bonobo]

Originally Posted by S/V Illusion

Well that you documented it but your concern might be considered more credible if you had tried cleaning it up or at least collected some as evidence.

I think that is terrible someone would discard such trash in that way but it would have been better to clean it up rather than just to complain about it.

The trash WAS retrieved, by a local dive-center whom I have contact with and the local water-police. The trash was to big for my dinghy. These bags where HUGE, not shown on real size on the video. A small amount of the bags were lost.

[bonobo]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Bonobo,

Are there facilities for disposing of the poubelles ashore?

Are you sure the slurs were racial or perhaps against colonials by the underclass?

I know we've been places where yachties are disliked by the fisherfolk; same color, doesn't matter. They don't like us and many yachties look down on them, considering them stupid, uncouth, rude, and low class.

FWIW.

Ann

Anti colonialists for sure but I know a racial insult from a "ass...le " insult. I'm french speaking and european ...
"** ...g White men", go back to your country, is racial for me ...

[Butler]

Class - 1st world/3rd world rather than racist in my book and yes it is ironic that those who earn their livelihood from the ocean would make a mess of it though we 1st worlders know a thing or two about soiling our own nest...
As visitors aboard "yachts" in a places where people often struggle day-by-day without the wherewithal to adventure and recreate (as in recreation, don't know if the verb form even exists???) as we can it's problematic to try and hold them to our standards for behavior. I would not have filmed the incident though I would have tried to find a way to help clean it up as you considered doing and let the local gendarmes know who was responsible. Since the the French sank one of the Rainbow Warriors with some plastic explosive not sure Greenpeace would be too keen on following up on this one ;~>

[Richard5]

I suspect that even if you were not white, not from a foreign country you still would have been subjected to pejorative language. But being of those qualities makes it easy to sound the epitaphs. It's like saying haole why doncha get back on plane and go home! Except I didn't come on plane.

FWIW, I was anchored in Drakes Bay inside of Pt Reyes Nat'l Seashore when I saw a boat discharge at least two used oil filters into the bay. I contacted the USCG and told exactly what I had seen. They refereed me to a phone number. I wondered how was I to call a phone number in those pre-cell phone days. As I a surfer I was quite interested in the little zippers along the beach but then I wondered how would I like an oil sheen in the water. I was yet again aghast at the lack of response from the CG.

[zboss]

I hate to sound like an environmental freak but if it were not for plastics, this would be much less of a problem.

[Richard5]

Zboss, it isn't freakish to be worried about the stewarding of the world. I'm socially and fiscally conservative and I am greatly concerned with the over packaging of goods. And that packaging is invariably plastic. I decline such packaging whenever I can. I pick up plastic everywhere I go, it's not hard to find.

Consider it takes about one drop (made up exaggeration to illustrate how cheaply plastic is made) of refined oil which can adversely affect many creatures. I'm sick of it! Recycling is a great thing but not efficient enough, especially in the consideration that 'downstream' the plastic may become some other form of pollutant.

A synthetically plasticized* wood by-product would be a good alternative for a significant portion of packaging.

*plasticized does not mean petroleum based plastic.

[bonobo]

[QUOTE=Butler;1306097]Class - 1st world/3rd world rather than racist in my book
As visitors aboard "yachts" in a places where people often struggle day-by-day without the wherewithal to adventure and recreate (as in recreation, don't know if the verb form even exists???)

Tere is no such "class" struggle in Martinique, this is France. These "fishermen" have SUV's and BMW's These "fishermen" have government aid when things go bad for them economically wise. And this "pollution" act is not the only problem here, a couple months ago, somme of these "fishermen" lifted the anchor and chains of a couple sailboats at night, only swift reactions and help from other boats prevented serious damages when these boats went adrift ... As some of these individuals have wives who are member of the town council, not much can harm them. Only a "over their head" action directly to the actual state government seems productive, or the tread of large publication of these acts that could harm the country's touristic income.
I need to clarify this is NOT a general behavior here, only the doing of a handful extremist who wand independence for the island and don't like "tourists" in "their" sea as they say..