The Territorial Council of May 20 unanimously adopted the project carried by the Nature Reserve for the construction of a Caribbean biodiversity institute.
"Today our territory does not have any scientific or cultural equipment" underlined Daniel Gibbs on May 20 during the territorial council in the introduction of the deliberation for an approval of the compatibility of the Land Use Plan for the construction project of the Caribbean Island Biodiversity Institute (ICBI) carried by the Saint-Martin Nature Reserve.
Deliberation adopted unanimously by the elected representatives of the territorial council. This step described as "fundamental" by the director of the Nature Reserve Nicolas Maslach, will allow the deposit an application for a building permit in order, he hopes, to see the first stone laid at the end of the year for a final delivery in 2023. The project, at a total cost of 9,5 million d euros was developed in collaboration with the COM and the architectural firm Vedea which includes local architects.
A project described as "ambitious" and whose construction cost is estimated at 9,5 million euros, born in 2016, and which has since taken time due to the passage of Irma and administrative, political, economic and financial.
Planned to be built on the edge of the Barrière pond in Cul-de-Sac, the ICBI aims to be both a scientific and university research center on local flora and fauna, an interior museum including rooms of exhibition and giant screens for an immersion in virtual reality in the natural environments of the island, a reception center for schoolchildren and will include a 180-seat auditorium that can accommodate all kinds of cultural events, a restaurant and a shop with a view on the sea and the pond. The giant aquarium initially planned was finally withdrawn following the financial and energy constraints it implied, but above all climatic. The building, built on concrete stilts to protect itself from marine submersion in the event of a cyclone, will also be a care center for wild animals and surrounded by ponds, a botanical collection representing the richness of endemic vegetation and a elevated path around the pond.
"It is a great tool in the service of the development of Saint-Martin" considers Daniel Gibbs who specifies that this "project of general interest is the bearer of a strategy based on sustainable development, biodiversity, university and scientific research, ecotourism, the creation of local jobs (fifteen initially), economic development and regional cooperation ”.
The ICBI aims to become the showcase of Saint-Martin's heritage and to be self-financing.
Nicolas Maslach relies in particular on ecotourism and in particular that of ornithologists, which according to him generates 560 million euros per year worldwide. "If we manage to capture 4 to 5% of the 700 tourist excursions organized each year throughout the country, or 000 to 80 visitors per year, it will already be fantastic." In addition to an external population which will constitute the economic manna of the project, the ICBI wants to be a tool at the disposal of the inhabitants in order to bring, through regional or even international conferences, festivals and conferences, reflections on the future of the territory such as energy consumption or development.
Source: www.soualigapost.com
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