by Nicholas RAINER

Beyond the miasmas of lorry politics where brittle promises of social justice are brandished in the same breath as my-community-is-holier-than-yours rhetoric, lies the physical landscape that once so famously inspired Mark Twain to comparing the island to a blueprint for heaven.

Even the most skeptical observer will be forced to concede that the beautiful young lady that once was Mauritius is looking increasingly haggard, scarred and spent. Yet neither of the two main political blocs, which have been sparring intensely for weeks now, have uttered a single word on what their environmental vision for the country is.

It is indeed a tragic indictment of the state of the nation when our "leaders" indulge in daily barrages of character assassination and name-calling without ever addressing such vital issues, as waste management, deforestation and pollution. Naturally, one has to concede that the adversary-bashing strategy has far wider popular appeal than talking of the need, for example, of protecting and promoting our dwindling natural resources.

Yet a basic premise for the enhancement of the quality of life of a country?s citizens resides in ensuring that the physical environment in which they live is healthy. This not only applies to the villagers of Mare-Chicose whose lives are literally sullied by the dump nearby. Soon, a much higher percentage of the population will begin feeling the direct and indirect effects of the despoliation of the natural landscape.

This will also take its toll on the hotel industry as tourists increasingly seek pristine and original destinations to elope to. The concept of eco-tourism being trumpeted in some quarters is still inchoate at best and, at worst, nothing more than a smokescreen behind which uninhibited development is unfolding. Sustainable development, it seems, is strictly the stuff of speeches, which can be dusted off every now and again for one of the myriad international conferences that stumble onto our soil.

The ministry of Environment has, during its relatively short lifespan, done some good work in sensitizing the population on the need to be more respectful of our natural surroundings. Unfortunately, its work, and its budget, are but small drops in the vast ocean of what needs to be done if Mauritius is to regain an iota of its former natural glory.

Widespread higher education, the advent of the internet and such current affairs, such as the south-east highway project and global warming, have all contributed to creating an eco-conscience that was inexistent on a large scale five years ago. If the majority of the electorate still allows the political class to eschew environmental issues, the same will not be true five years from now. By that time though, there might not be any roses left to smell.