Forest Department Silent on Boston Logging Case

News Five continues to follow the Forest Department’s investigation into the illegal logging in Boston Village that was uncovered a couple weeks back. To date, the Department has not provided an update on its investigation and the charges that will be levied against the perpetrators. What made this case even more interesting is the intervention of government ministers when police officers sought put an end to the logging operation. Those ministers have since provided explanations as to their involvement. Today, we asked Minister of Sustainable Development, Orlando Habet, if he has questioned those Cabinet colleagues about what transpired. Here is how he responded.

 

Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development

“No, I haven’t spoken to them. Um, but the fact that initially it wasn’t an illegal thing, right? Because the person had a logging license for a very short period. I believe it was given in the fifteenth of May. I don’t know when they picked up their document. So maybe they picked it up the week after, up to July thirty-first. So it was just about two and a half months. The illegal part there would have been when they went beyond their boundaries and also when they went beyond the thirty-first of July.”

 

Reporter

“Minister is it unusual though that the equipment being used at that location was left to be taken back to the saw mill for that operator? Shouldn’t you require like a court order for that to happen?”

 

Orlando Habet

“I’m not aware about that, but if that happen then possibly yes, because then the government, the forest department will have to see what to do there. But if they had the equipment there because they were harvesting lumber legally, then who knows? And we don’t know. We are doing the investigation. How can you tell which logs were harvested after the thirty-first of July or the second and third of August?”

 

Reporter

“So you should be telling us that because you guys are the regulators. How do you ensure that what should be done is done on the ground.”

 

Orlando Habet

“But how can your personnel be out there every day? They might be there once a week, but they can’t be there every day.”

 

Reporter

“How do we change that?”

 

Orlando Habet

“Maybe through technology, maybe AI, maybe, putting in drones, and the like, satellite systems.”

 

Reporter

“They’re working with the police to assist as well?”

 

Orlando Habet

“I don’t know if we have sufficient police to be doing the policing of logging.”