(Eleuthera, Bahamas) – Local activists who led the way with the “Save Egg Island” petition, now with just shy of 3,000 signatures, marked a major victory for the less than two week old campaign on Friday, July 22nd, 2016, when they woke to reports that Disney Cruise Line had taken the decision, not to construct a cruise port at Egg Island, North Eleuthera.
Egg Island, is located next to Royal Island, off North Eleuthera’s coast.
According to published reports, Disney Cruise Line communicated that after completing a comprehensive review of a project at Egg Island it was – “determined that the environmental impact of the intended development would be too significant.”
Holly Peel, a local resident from Spanish Wells who spearheaded the “Save Egg Island” campaign, reacted early on Friday after hearing the news, saying, “We are so thankful that Disney made the right decision and decided to walk away from the Egg Island development due to the environmental risks. We were so close to losing Egg Island. This is a great victory for the Bahamas and this will set a strong precedent now. Our voices do matter and this will help conservation throughout the Bahamas!”
While today was a significant victory for those who set out to stop the immediate threats to Egg Island, Mrs. Peel emphasized that this was just the beginning of the efforts to protect the area, in a way that would preserve it for future generations, and allow locals to enjoy it responsibly in the present. “We recognize that this was our first hurdle, we will regroup on Monday and work towards our ultimate goal, to protect the island from future development. There are many people behind this goal, just as there were many, many people behind “Save Egg Island”.
