Last week Wednesday, Leaf Cay was the first resort to receive approval in principal by the government to develop overwater bungalows. Instrumental to this approval in principle was a report - "A Review of Overwater Bungalows: Environmental Considerations Specific to The Bahamas" - by Keith Bishop of Islands By Design and Melissa Alexiou, now of Waypoint Consulting.
According to the report, "An overwater bungalow mimics in most respects a standard dock structure with known environmental considerations that can be managed under the guidelines of an environmental management plan."
Such environmental considerations were noted as habitat degradation due to alteration of light conditions from shading, and turbidity generated from suspended sediment during construction.
By highlighting similarities with docks and marina structures, the report identifies issues presently known to marina operators and coastal resource managers.
The report added: "Thus, the impacts to vegetation, the physical environment, and management of utilities, with the exception of sewerage are familiar to Bahamian coastal resource managers. Though even here marina operators must contend with direct pump out of waste from individual vessels, a problem identified in Elizabeth Harbour, Great Exuma where a direct discharge of sewerage is now prohibited."
In terms of waste management, most notably sewerage, the innovative use of shipboard technology to contain and handle the generated waste is recommended.
Aware of the pristine environment that these units will occupy, all waste water will be collected and handled through a macerator and evacuated either by gravity or by low pressure and discharge into a land-based Bio Digester treating waste water anaerobically, thus ensuring no raw water release to the environment.
Moreover, the document notes that overwater bungalows are not always appropriate given the location.
"At the very least, the Bahamian government must recognize that the proposed location for any overwater structure, dock or bungalow on any given island of The Bahamas depends on the local physical and environmental parameters," according to the report.
Recent comments from Eric Carey, executive director of the Bahamas National Trust, urging the government to develop an overwater bungalow policy align with the recommendation for National Overwater Bungalow Guidelines that would "proactively deter development proposals that would result in environmental degradation".
According to Alexiou, the document represents an alternative approach to assessing new tourism products or innovative development proposals not yet available in The Bahamas.
"The report underlines the need for more applied science in the decision-making process," she said.
"The Bahamas has incredible natural resources, but it has to be amenable to innovative products. This report served to facilitate understanding of the environmental considerations specific to overwater bungalows."

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