Free-roaming cows near the Choc roundabout may soon be a thing of the past, according to Minister of Agriculture, Lisa Jawahir.
Just two days after videos and photos were posted to Jawahir’s Facebook page showing cattle near the highway being corralled, the newly appointed minister told reporters at Monday’s Cabinet press briefing that steps to address the long-standing issue are now being taken.
“I am happy to inform the general public that we began the process on the weekend,” Jawahir said, as she thanked former Minister for Agriculture, Alfred Prospere. “He began the process of preparing the site, which is in Vieux Fort at Cocoa Dan. We already have several livestock farmers occupying the space, and the ministry’s livestock representative attends to the animals every single morning.”
Efforts to relocate the cattle to Vieux Fort had begun months earlier. In September last year, after a vehicle collided with cattle attempting to cross the road near the Choc roundabout, Acting Director of Agricultural Services Kemuel Jn Baptiste told St Lucia Times that pasture land in the island’s south had already been identified. A well-known cattle owner in the area also told St Lucia Times that he had visited the site at Cocoa Dan.
“When I went to see the land, I was impressed. They’ve already fenced it. I agreed to move there, so anytime from now, I’ll be in Vieux Fort,” he said at the time.
According to Jawahir, a count of “about 77 heads of cattle” was conducted in the Choc area, though not all animals cooperated during the weekend operation. Untethered cattle had to be sedated, restrained, and then loaded onto trucks. She estimates that transporting all the cattle to Vieux Fort will take “a few weeks”.
Concerns were raised, particularly on social media, about the problem being shifted to the south. However, Jawahir said the relocation site is secure.
“It is enclosed and away from the highway. We are fully aware of other situations, for example along the Cul de Sac Millennium Highway where there are other cattle, but rest assured we are moving very quickly,” she said.
Jawahir also noted that not all cattle owners have come forward.
Although the grazing land near the highway is privately owned, the minister said the Ministry of Agriculture is working with the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to install signage aimed at discouraging public grazing and plans are in place to act within the law where prohibitions are ignored.
It is an offence for animal owners to allow livestock to stray in ways that can cause danger or obstruction. Under the Animals Act (Cap. 3.11), the owner of an animal that wanders or is found tied near a public highway in a way likely to cause obstruction can be fined up to $5 000, or be imprisoned for up to two years, or both. Cattle can also be seized and impounded by authorised officers until claimed by the owner.
