Coastal land purchase.(united states virgin islands)(Brief article)

0 Comments | Caribbean Update, November, 2007

A large swath of coastal land has been secured by a US conservation group, paving the way for the biggest expansion of the US Virgin Islands National Park since it was created more than 50 years ago, reports AP (Sept. 25, 2007). The US$19 million deal to buy the majority of 419 acres of tropical terrain, which features ruins of colonial plantations and is believed to contain pre-Columbian Indian village sites, was reached by The Trust for Public Land after years of negotiations with private owners, the group said.

The pristine property on St. John, known as Estate Maho Bay, will be transferred to the National Park Service when federal funds become available in two to three years, said John Garrison, the San Francisco-based non-profit's project manager for the...