By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

Environmentalists yesterday demanded that the Government “rescind” the extension granted to the Bahamas Petroleum Company's (BPC) license to drill for oil in Bahamian waters.

Joseph Darville, chairman of Save the Bays, told Tribune Business he remains adamantly against the company's exploration activities. "I am even more adamant that our government is going down a very dangerous path and it makes no sense whatsoever," he said.

“Besides the fact that there is an incredible amount of cessation for the need presently, and certainly in the near future for drilling for oil, the fact is there are multiple spillages around the world now that are causing havoc for the environment. The most recent one, I am sure you are aware of in [Mauritius], is going to devastate their whole environment on which they depend.

"A spillage off of the coast of Andros or on any particular island in the northern Bahamas is not only going to affect the rest of The Bahamas because of the currents that we have, and the movement of the gulf stream and also the wind directions; all of this stuff is going to move south to all of the other islands of The Bahamas and also go north into the Gulf area, and into the coastal areas both east and west of Florida," Mr Darville continued.

“Whatever they have to do to rescind that license they should do it for the good of the country, for the good of the people and for the good of our sacred environment. It is not a matter of if, but when, we have a catastrophic spill or we have a category five hurricane that’s going to rip up anything that BPC puts there.”

Mr Darville spoke out after BPC confirmed the Government has granted it a three-and-a-half month extension to its licence, and obligation to spud a well in waters south-west of Andros near the maritime boundary with Cuba, due to the delays caused by COVID-19.

“The company has received formal notification from the Government of The Bahamas that, on an interim basis, a 3.5 months force majeure extension to the second exploration period of the company’s southern licences in The Bahamas has been granted such that the current term of those licences will now extend to at least mid-April 2021, and by which time BPC must have commenced well activities,” BPC said.

“Given that the relevant force majeure event is presently continuing (namely, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, currently ongoing in both The Bahamas and in relevant international jurisdictions), BPC remains in constructive dialogue with The government as to the ultimate full extent of the force majeure extension.

“However, the interim extension to mid-April 2021, as now confirmed, is sufficient to provide certainty for the purposes of the drilling of Perseverance One, which is scheduled to commence in the window of 15 December, 2020, to 1 February, 2021.”

In response, Casuarina Mckinney-Lambert, BREEF’s executive director, said: “We’re obviously very concerned because this poses an immediate threat to our sports fishing and tourism industry in The Bahamas, and we do not think that drilling in Bahamian waters is a good idea.”

Also calling for the Government to reverse BPC’s license extension, she added: "This is a recipe for economic disaster. We have been impacted hugely by Hurricane Dorian, and also by the COVID-19 pandemic, and oil pollution in our waters would just be another peg in our coffin.”

"I think there are a lot of issues, but the main issue is an economic one - we’re jeopardising our fisheries and our tourism. Oil is not very sustainable, and as we come out of this pandemic we need to jumpstart our economy.

"We need to be doing that with green jobs, and we should be thinking about alternative energy. It is quite hypocritical to embark on a new industry of oil drilling in a country that is so vulnerable to climate change."