In a last minute move and without any public hearings or warnings the Government of Jamaica asked the UN to not designate the Portland Bight Protected Area as a biosphere at this time. This came on the heels of the PBPA having the application accepted for the biosphere just last month. The UNESCO application process took some 8 plus years and involved several levels of the government & NGO's as well as other stakeholders of the PBPA. We all see this as a move to clear a major hurdle in going forward with the transshipping hub in the PBPA. We will continue to press the GOJ for the detailed agreement made with CHEC/China on the port project. We will also be fighting to have the area designated a biosphere. We urge you to write the Jamaica Observer or Gleaner or write to the UNESCO requesting that the PBPA biosphere application be accepted and the area designated as such.