Dear Editor,
As the long-time steward of Lotterie Farm, I read Rajesh Chintaman’s article, “Are We Saving Our Green?” with deep resonance, and, frankly, a sense of sorrowful familiarity.
For the past two decades, I’ve dedicated my life to protecting what remains one of the island’s last intact microclimate forest canopies. Long before “sustainability” became fashionable, I committed to a path that proves preservation and progress are not mutually exclusive. Through Lotterie Farm, I’ve worked to show that eco-commerce, when approached with intention and humility, can support conservation, not destroy it.
We didn’t clear-cut. We built around the forest. We let the canopy dictate the design. Every trail, every structure, every experience was designed to exist within the natural environment, not at its expense. And where trees were lost to storms or time, we replanted, thousands of them.
The forest at Lotterie Farm still stands because we chose a different path. Not an easier one. A slower, more deliberate one, but one that allowed nature to remain in conversation with the human footprint.
The article rightly calls out the unchecked developments scarring our hillsides, projects that erase tamarind trees, silk cottons, mangoes, and replace them with concrete and regret. That reality is not abstract. It’s real. And yet, this forest still breathes.
We’ve weathered hurricanes, economic pressure, and bureaucratic challenges. But through it all, we’ve held to one simple truth: You can build without destroying.
I don’t write this seeking praise. I write it because this model is possible, and it’s replicable. The question the article raises, “Are we saving our green?”, is not rhetorical. It’s urgent. And the answer depends on the decisions we make right now.
I stand in full support of stronger environmental oversight, transparent permitting, and a tree protection framework that’s actually enforced. But more than that, I believe private landowners and developers must step up, not as adversaries, but as partners in protection. I’ve spent 20 years proving it can be done.
The forest at Lotterie Farm is a living argument, that shade is worth more than shortcuts, that trees hold memory, that legacy matters. And as long as I am able, I will continue to fight for every root, every branch, every canopy that still has a chance to stand.
Respectfully: William Welch
