Environmental News

Human Services Ends In-Person Services For SNAP, MAP Offices On St. Croix After COVID-19 Exposure
FREDERIKSTED — The Virgin Islands Department of Human Services announced today that they are immediately closing the SNAP and MAP offices at the Mars Hill location in St. Croix due to a positive COVID-19 exposure of a staff member. The Offices will be closed from Tuesday, March 2, 2021 and

As Pandemic Eases Elsewhere, Some Caribbean States Face Worst Outbreaks Yet
KINGSTON (Reuters) — In Jamaica, which won praise for containing its coronavirus outbreak last year, patients now overflow into corridors on chairs and stretchers in some hospitals, prompting the Caribbean nation to open three emergency field hospitals While global new infections start to decline, a handful of countries across the

UVI’s Glass Crusher Project To Begin Accepting Glass Waste For Recycling Next Month
CHARLOTTE AMALIE — For years, the University of the Virgin Islands through its Coastal Cleanup initiatives has picked up glass beverage bottles and other trash that littered Virgin Islands beaches and shores. Through UVI’s Glass Crusher Project, the local higher learning institution is once again gearing up to accept glass waste from the community to improve recycling efforts here. UVI will host a glass collection effort starting on the last Saturday

Family of 11-Year-Old Boy Who Died In Texas Deep Freeze Files $100 Million Suit Against Power Companies
HOUSTON — Texas power providers Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and Entergy Corporation have been hit with a $100 million lawsuit accusing them of gross negligence in the death of a child whose family suspects he suffered hypothermia when they lost electricity and heat in their mobile home during

American Couple Rebuilds Brown Pelican Statue Damaged By Hurricane Irma
PHILIPSBURG — As part of the “PJIAE Good News” campaign, we are delighted to publicize that the “Brown Pelican” trio statues will soar once again at the Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM). During an elaborate unveiling ceremony, the sculptures were erected as beautification for the roundabout at the Airport Road

Who Were The First People To Call The Caribbean Home?
NASSAU — Locals in the Bahamas will tell you the best time for beachcombing is after a big storm. There’s a rumor, unconfirmed, that on one such beach trip, people found gold coins. And on one such October day in 2015, in the aftermath of Hurricane Joaquin, three Long Island

Let’s Preserve Point Udall’s Natural Beauty For Generations To Come: OP-ED
The other day, I got a text from a Crucian friend, Vivian St. Juste, now living in North Carolina. The text was in reference to me taking out her two friends who were visiting St. Croix for the first time. On the top of their list was to see the

FEMA Gives $2.9 Million For Needed Repairs To Turnbull Library On St. Thomas
CHARLOTTE AMALIE — The Office of Disaster Recovery announces the obligation of $2,902,538 by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Public Assistance Program (FEMA) to the Department of Planning and Natural Resources to complete repairs to the Charles W. Turnbull Regional Library on St. Thomas. The three-story, 40,000 square foot facility

SNAKES OF ST. CROIX! What To Do About Exotic Pets Once They Are Loosed Into Our Neighborhoods
CHRISTIANSTED — Todd Kirkpatrick of Estate Rattan wrote to the Virgin Islands Free Press this week and asked what to do with a nine-foot-long Boa constrictor that was living under a storage container in his yard. What to do indeed. That is the problem plaguing many homeowners around the island

Rich Cultural, Historical History Of The Virgin Islands Present In Its People And Its Buildings: OP-ED
March is Virgin Islands History Month. As a Virgin Islander, I find that we are ignorant to our rich history and culture that distinguishes us from any other people on Earth. We are nothing but a dot on the world map, yet we contribute to the world intellectually and culturally