MTV & Giant Leatherback Turtles

[Anne Sykes]

Hello Steve

Thanks for your e-mail yesterday about the BBC getting onto this story. Yes, I did contact him and he came back to me straight away.

This is what the chap from the BBC's e-mail said: -

'Many thanks for contacting me - I really appreciate it.

I had been hoping to cover this story, as it is important in conservation terms. However I've found out that the MTV filming is done and dusted - they have been away from Tobago for a couple of weeks now. Which means that I have to leave it this time.

From what SOS in Tobago were telling me, this is, though, not a unique happening. So in the future we might be able to return to the issue'.

What a shame...

I do hope the crew left the beach as they found it and didn't do too much damage - perhaps if anyone has returned in the last couple of weeks, they can confirm this????

As this seems to be an on going / regular event, and the BBC are now onto the case, hopefully something positive will be done about it in the future. It's just a shame we were a couple of weeks too late this time round.

Anne

[Anna M]

Hello everybody,
Please could all friends of leatherbacks go to the link below and send a letter by email to MTV.
The letter is already written.
It is important that as many people as possible sign this.

http://www.seaturtles.org/actionalertde ... AlertID=93

Thanks.

[Steve Wooler]

Hi Anna

I'm happy to oblige and have done so. Sadly, my message was rejected by the mail system. The form on the SOS site goes to [email protected] and the message has been rejected as "mailbox name not allowed". If you go to their website, http://www.bunim-murray.com you will see a statement about the Tobago turtle situation - so they are obviously getting a lot of flack and, I suggest, have closed the mailbox.

I would suggest trying to send your letters of protest to [email protected] with copies to [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected].

[Lou W]

Sorry, I might be being really thick about this but if MTV have left the beach, why send letters to them now? This should have been done before they went on the beach. Unfortunatly it is a sad fact of life that no matter what is done, they will go ahead with their plans and not care about what we say.
As I have said before, the MTV problem was only to last a few weeks, I know that they put up there gazebo thing over some nests and killed the whole lot of the eggs, but there are more problems on that beach than this.
I have heard from many many people on turtle beach who are angry with the whole leatherback situation. They are aware that tourism will start to decrease without the leatherbacks. It is not solely MTV's fault that by the time I reach 50 there is expected to be no more leatherbacks. Times need to change, laws need to be more strict and people need to accept some responsibility for what is happening.