It Takes More Than Sand To Make A Beach
Legislature Could Face Fines of Up To $10,000 Per Day
The man-made beach at the St. Thomas Legislature building is illegal and the Legislature’s Deputy Chief General Counsel has recommended that immediate action be taken to reverse the environmental damage the project has already caused.
“A rocky shoreline cannot be transformed into a sandy beach merely by dumping and compacting sand on the shore,” Deputy Chief Counsel Yvonne Tharpes wrote.
The legal opinion was delivered by Tharpes in response to an inquiry by Senator Adlah “Foncie” Donastorg. Donastorg sought the opinion after learning on Wednesday that the area around the Legislature’s building had been improperly altered through the removal of boulders and addition of sand.
The illegal action subjects the Legislature to civil and criminal penalties, in addition to damaging the environment and ecosystem. The deposit of fill material also violates Federal and local water pollution control acts. This type of violation is classified as a misdemeanor and penalties may include fines of up to $10,000 per day, imprisonment of a term of up to one year, or both. The project also violates provisions of the Coastal Zone Management Act.
The project was also apparently started without the proper permits and Tharpes wrote, “I strongly advise that the Legislature immediately contact DPNR (Department of Planning and Natural Resources) and agree to a corrective action plan to restore the area and mitigate the environmental damage the project has caused.”
Tharpes is a former DPNR employee and an expert in Coastal Zone Management Law.
This all begs the question, who authorized this work?
Senate President Louis P. Hill has been quoted as saying he was unaware of the project, an assertion that Sen. Donastorg characterized as “somewhat disingenuous” in a letter to the President. (attached)
“Given the breadth of your experience as a public official, and your past work on environmental issues, how can you claim ignorance in regard to a project of this scope and considerable expense?” Donastorg asked.
This opinion is the latest in series of events triggered when Sen. Donastorg, after becoming aware of the beach project on Wednesday, reported the situation by letter to Sen. Hill. He was later assaulted by Legislature Executive Director Louis “Lolo” Willis while he attempted to take pictures of the site. (see “Law Makers or Law Breakers”)
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It is just a shoot the messenger mentality — if you can’t dispute the facts (Mafoliegate/illegal beach) then you gotta discredit the messenger plain and simple.
They just keep straying away from the topic to attack Senator Donastorg, They got to feel threaten when they keep attacking him.