Defending Sampson Cay
Taking a strong stand for nature and responsible development
Why we are fighting
Stepping up to defend Sampson Cay
Sampson Cay and Turtlegrass Resort have been confronted with an existential threat. Yntegra Group is pushing ahead with a Rosewood Exuma resort project that we beleive is too dense and too destructive for this place. A petition calling for the government to halt further approvals to Yntegra has garnered thousands of signatures from Bahamians.
How we got here
This fight came to us
From the very beginning, Turtlegrass Resort set out to do development differently in The Bahamas. We wanted to develop our resort in a way that truly honours and respects the environment, beyond marketing and promises of sustainability.
One year after Turtlegrass Resort was welcomed and approved by the Bahamian government, the government, without notifying us, approved Yntegra Group’s Rosewood Exuma resort project on the same island.
We didn't set out to fight a precedent-setting environmental case. But this project is advancing without the consent of the Bahamians it affects and without the environmental scrutiny the law requires. We're in court to defend the Exumas, and the right of Bahamians to have a say in what happens to their islands.
Events
Timeline of Recent Events
Why It Matters
What’s at stake
Sampson Cay and the Exumas are part of a fragile marine ecosystem that Bahamians have relied on for generations. The Rosewood Exuma project puts it at risk. And if it's approved as planned, it lowers the bar for every development that follows in the Exumas
A Strained Sampson Cay
Suffocating Sampson Cay
The problem is one of scale. Yntegra's plan puts a 500+ capacity resort on a small cay, serviced by an industrial dock in the North Bay. Sampson cannot absorb it, the sewage, the power demand, the boat traffic, the clearing of thousands of native protected plants, and the industrial infrastructure to run it all. Low-density, environmentally responsible development is possible here. This plan is far beyond it.
North Bay at Risk
Irreparably damage the North Bay
Yntegra plans to dredge in the pristine North Bay and turn it into an industrial shipping channel to service their resort. Experts say this work, including installing a massive seawall, would irreparably damage the marine habitat and nearby beaches, as well as the guest experience at neighbouring resorts. It’s also completely unnecessary.
Pressuring Existing Resorts
Encroaching on Existing Resorts
Directly across the North Bay sits Over Yonder Cay, one of the highest-rated resorts in the Caribbean. Yntegra would place its sewage treatment, diesel generators, garbage storage, and industrial supply dock facing it, and route 120-foot supply ships within 400 feet of its premier beach and 200 feet off two of Turtlegrass Resort’s recreational beaches - putting locals and visitors at risk and ruining the very experience that is the hallmark of The Bahamas.
A Community’s Right
A community’s right to be heard
The people of the Exumas have been clear about how Sampson Cay should be developed and what happens to the North Bay. These are the waters they fish, the beaches they grew up on, and the livelihoods their families have built over generations. A decision this big should not be made over their heads. Yet there has been a pattern of missing transparency and due process with the Rosewood Exuma project. Approvals moved ahead without the consultation the community had every right to expect, and the questions residents raised went unanswered. Being heard isn't too much to ask, it's where getting development right has to start.
A Dangerous Precedent
A precedent the Exumas can't afford
What happens on Sampson Cay will not stay on Sampson Cay. If a project this dense can be approved here, over the objections of residents, neighbouring operators and independent experts, the next approval gets easier and the next objection counts for less. The Exuma cays are small, shallow and close together. There are dozens more where this plan would fit just as badly.
Yntegra’s Track Record
A question of experience: Yntegra’s track record
There are unanswered questions about whether a group with Yntegra Group’s track record should be trusted to develop 124 acres of a pristine and ecologically-sensitive island in Exuma. Before Sampson Cay, Yntegra worked a deal with the Bahamian government to develop Cave Cay. They proposed a concept that never gained traction and when investors with more development experience took over, they immediately scaled down Yntegra’s plans for the island to just one-third of their original density. The same reduction is needed at Sampson Cay.
Explore
A better way
There is a way for Yntegra to build their resort without turning the North Bay into an industrial shipping channel. Yntegra already plans two marinas in deep water at the south end of the island. The supply dock, and back of house facilities could go there. There would be no need for dredging in the North Bay, no seawall through the channel. The Department of Physical Planning has called the relocation of the dock essential. Yntegra has given four reasons it cannot be done. Our new film breaks down all four, using Yntegra's own plans and its own environmental report. None of them hold up.
Sampson Cay on Record
A public record of conditions at Sampson Cay
