ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC BASELINE STUDIES Grenada Site Report for Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves Prepared for: The OECS Protected Areas and Associated Livelihoods (OPAAL) Project Prepared by: IRF Team Comprising: Dr. Brian Cooper, Lucia Mings, Kevel Lindsay, and Jean-Pierre Bacle 6 June 2011 Topographic Map of Central Grenada showing approximate boundaries of the Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves. (Based on D.O.S 1:50,000 Topographic Map – Government of Grenada, 1992) Acknowledgements This activity is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through the World Bank and the Fond Français de L’Environment Mondial (FFEM). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the donor agencies supporting the activity or of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). This report on the baseline environmental and socio-economic studies of the Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves, which together form the demonstration site for the OECS Protected Areas and Associated Livelihoods Project in Grenada, has benefited from several prior studies and reports which have been acknowledged and documented in the text and in the References section. In particular, the authors would like to mention Lloyd Gardner’s Comparative Analysis for Development of a Harmonised Protected Areas Management Framework within the OECS, which was completed in January 2007, and the Management Plan for the GE&AFR, produced by Mel Turner in August, 2007. Both documents provided useful baseline information and thoughtful analysis. Many other persons contributed to the gathering of information and its interpretation. In particular, the Chief Forestry Officer and head of the NICE, Aden Forteau, and Anthony Jeremiah, Forest Conservation Officer and OPAAL National Project Coordinator, were very helpful in facilitating meetings, providing transport and assigning Forest Officers to accompany the field team on their demanding schedules for collection of plants and other information, bat surveys and other field work, as well as obtaining maps and the necessary documentation for off-island shipment of specimens for identification. Thanks are also due to the group of Forest Officers who willingly accompanied the field team on their surveys and provided useful local information and guidance. island resources P a g e iii Other members of the Ministry of Agriculture, including the Chief Agricultural Officer, Daniel Lewis and the Head of the Land Use Department, Raymond Baptiste, provided willing assistance in procuring GIS data and more general information about the work of the Ministry. The many persons who willingly gave of their time to be interviewed by the socio- economic team must also be thanked for their contribution to the data gathering and interpretation. These have been listed elsewhere in the document. In particular, the team would like to thank the several individuals who provided personal descriptions and observations of their relationship with the forest and their thoughts on how these relationships could become more sustainable and supporting. The help of our Local Partner, Tyrone Buckmire, was invaluable in suggesting persons and organisations to meet and in arranging these meetings as well as by providing access to documents and reports, laws and other reference material—a process which went on long after our on-site visit. Finally, the assistance of the OECS Environment and Sustainable Development Unit in St. Lucia must be acknowledged for their support in providing guidance, project documents, and helpful comments on the draft reports. We know that the process of developing a functional system of protected areas to conserve the wonderful biodiversity which Grenada possesses is just beginning, and much work remains to be done. However, we hope that this report will provide some useful help in guiding the thinking and assessing the options, as the work the OPAAL Project goes forward. island resources P a g e iv Table of Contents ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC BASELINE STUDIES: Site Report for Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves, Grenada ............................. i Frontispiece: Topographic Map of Central Grenada showing approximate boundaries of the Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves ................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ........................................................................................................... v List of Acronyms and Abbreviations ................................................................................ x PART I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO BASELINE STUDIES 1. Overview ........................................................................................................... 1 1.1. The OPAAL Project........................................................................................................ 1 1.2. Need for A Systematic Approach to PA Development ................................................. 5 2. Site Description and Context .............................................................................. 6 2.1. Location and Extent ...................................................................................................... 6 2.2. Physical Description of the Forest Reserves................................................................. 7 3. Summary of Primary Findings ........................................................................... 12 3.1. Environmental Conditions and Assets ........................................................................ 12 3.2. The Socio-Economic Context ...................................................................................... 16 4. References ....................................................................................................... 17 5. List of Persons Consulted ................................................................................. 22 island resources P a g e v PART II. ENVIRONMENTAL BASELINE STUDY 1. Introduction to Environmental Study ............................................................... 23 1.1. Approach to the Environmental Baseline Study ........................................................ 24 1.2. Biodiversity Snapshot ................................................................................................. 25 1.3. Methodologies ........................................................................................................... 26 2. Observations: Vegetation and Flora ................................................................. 31 2.1. Vegetation Communities ............................................................................................ 31 2.2 Flora ............................................................................................................................ 32 2.3 Plant Species of Special Conservation Concern ......................................................... 37 2.4 Invasive Plant Species ................................................................................................. 38 3. Observations: Fauna ............................................................................. 40 3.1. General Observations ................................................................................................. 40 3.2 Birds ............................................................................................................................ 59 3.3 Mammals .................................................................................................................... 43 3.4 Reptiles and Amphibians ............................................................................................ 46 3.5. Game Species and Hunting ........................................................................................ 47 3.6. Invasive Vertebrate Species ....................................................................................... 49 4. Conservation Issues and Targets ....................................................................... 51 4.1. Restoring and Maintaining Ecological Integrity ......................................................... 51 4.2. Issues and Targets: Recommendations ..................................................................... 70 5. Preliminary List of Environmental Expert Consultants .................................. 56 APPENDIX 1 List of Birds of Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves ........................................... 59 APPENDIX 2 List of Plants of Grand Etand and Annandale Forest Reserves ...................................... 63 APPENDIX 3 Terrestrial Invertebrates of Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves .................... 75 APPENDIX 4 Terrestrial Mammals of Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves .......................... 78 APPENDIX 5 Amphibians and Reptiles of Grand Etang and Annadale Forest Reserves ...................... 80 APPENDIX 6 Assessment of Game Animal Populations ................................................................... 81 APPENDIX 7 Concept Proposal and Cost Estimate for a Ecological Assessment of Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves .......................................................... 83 APPENDIX 8 Concept Proposal and Cost Estimate for a Watershed Assessment of Grand Etang and Annandale Forest Reserves .................................................. 88 island