Data is not shared with policy makers, workshop members hear

The people of foreshore communities in Suva like Tamavua-i-wai, who gather food from near their homes, are likely eating food which is heavily contaminated with heavy metals.

Sadly, there is no data available for the public to know which food sources or which areas in the Suva Harbour and surrounding areas are polluted.

This, despite scientists from USP doing research on this topic, an environmental journalism workshop heard.

There have been comprehensive researches done on pollution, degradation of areas, depletion of marine life and their causes, but not shared with policy makers or people who are affected.

The Environmental Journalism Workshop is a partnership between Internews, Earth Journalism Network and USP Journalism. It heard that many important researches, which has evidence of degradation and environmental damage, are not shared. Matakite Maata, of the USP School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, has done research on heavy metals and levels of tributyltin in the Suva Harbour.

He said as academics, they had to publish in journals which were approved.

USP head of journalism Shailendra Singh said this was an area the marketing and public relations team of the university could look into.

Professor Vijay Naidu, former head of USP’s School of Government, Development and International Affairs agreed that there was no synergy in which research and valuable data collected by the scientists were shared with policy makers or enforcers to curb pollution.

Postgraduate research Rufino Varea has done research on 25 species of fish, including the mullet or kanace in the Suva Harbour. He said he could not divulge information yet if fish caught in the Suva Harbour were safe to eat.

Similarly, research done by Mr Maata on heavy metals could not be accessed by the public to find out which areas in the harbour have marine life contaminated by which heavy metal.

There were recommendations from the various academics that presented their data and research that not enough is being done by the custodians and enforcers of environment laws. But in saying that, they agreed that there was also no synergy or methods between them and the authorities that allowed the sharing of such data and research.

Scientists like Gilianne Brodie have started programmes where they have incorporated the Ministry of Fisheries and Forestry, but it is a start for now.