upside-down environment minister. proud to get rid of plastic bags. it harms the fish
he said. But it is all right to drill for oil. and it is allright for Cruise ships anchors to drag on
the sea bed.

He capatalise on the service station oil leak. but he has done a thousand times worse.

plastic bags was easy. it affected the poor people.

I agree with you Birdie but plastic bags are a big problem for our oceans in general and the Bahamas' seas in particular. I know. I walk on the beach nearly every day and plastic bags are everywhere. SuperValue, Kentucky Fried, you name it. The number of plastic straws, cups, forks, spoons knives, pieces of plastic bottles, whole plastic bottles, plastic bags of every size and nature which I gather on my beach walks is mind numbing and depressing. Plus, I read the studies and scientific reports on plastics polluting the ocean and it is a serious global problem.

Our government should have partnered with retailers and grocery stores and helped by partially subsidizing their bringing in re-usable bags that people could buy for a dollar. Once you get into the habit of shopping with reusable bags, it becomes habitual.. After my groceries are unpacked, I put the bags by my purse so that the next time I go to my car I will take them back and put them in it to have on hand for the next time I have to go into a store. Some I keep strictly for groceries and some for non-grocery items.

A study was recently done on a worldwide basis which tested the flesh of every size of fish from the smallest to the largest (I'm not sure if included whales), but every single fish had PCBs and plastics in its flesh. Just let that sink in.

At a time of global warming with rising oceans and more powerful hurricanes, California announced that by 2035 there will be no new gasoline powered cars. And what do we do at the same time in the Bahamas, drill for oil???

This is a no brainier. Obviously, this is not the country for oil drilling. Just look at what happened in Mauritius recently with the devastating oil spill. As with all things that smell fishy, follow the money. https://abcnews.go.com/International/wi…

Hard to believe any government would contemplate oil drilling in The Bahamas, even this band of doe does we are currently stuck with. There should never even be a discussion on the subject.

You do not understand it! Oil companies just clean the deep sea from dangerous substances like petroleum and they recycle it by feeding that stuff into internal combustion engines which convert the dirty oil into clean CO2, which in turn acts as plant fertilizer.

You're kidding; right? Otherwise, I think you've been deep into the Big Fossil
Fuel's endless propaganda machine of disinformation.

As a member of BREEF (Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation) I stand firmly against this inexcusable assault on our environment. Just the exploration phase will harm thousands of dolphins, whales and other marine life sensitive to the seismic blasting. So much so that many will even die. Oil drilling always is accompanied with leaks and spills. Always. The preposterous excuse that this Administration is only passing on the previous administration's licenses is hogwash: follow the money and it will show exactly who is going to profit and I can assure you, little, if any, will be the Bahamas Government. Our Government is using the excuse of covid19 and I do realize that we desperately need funds. First of all close down or sell Bahamasair. Take the $2M monthly losses and pay out the employees a hefty package which gives them enough time to get re-established in jobs. Secondly, immediately institute a National lottery and keep the millions of dollars that monthly flow out to America's lotteries in our own country. Next, make the Bahamas more attractive to legitimate people who want to invest here and take away some of the overwhelming red tape. We need protections/regulations but there is a way to have meaningful parameters but still encourage legitimate and profitable businesses to open here that will benefit our country. Next, legalize marijuana and let's get going with growing hemp and marijuana. We could have a medical marijuana hub, we can manufacture hempcrete which has far superior qualities of strength, it is 1/8th the weight, the environmental impact of making it is greatly less and it does not expand and contract the way concrete does. Then there is the superior to regular plywood, hemp plywood, hemp fabrics, hemp oil and bio fuels. There is an entire industry waiting for a place to park itself and the Bahamas could be it. From farm to finish, the Bahamas could be excelling with that and the marijuana industries. Our Government is still in 20th a Century mindset but we are now in the 21st Century. Why don't we have a mini Silicon Valley of tech companies developing in Grand Bahama? It could be made so attractive to many entrepreneurs looking for just what the Bahamas could offer in incentives and tax breaks. We absolutely have to get beyond the tourism only mindset as our main industry. It is never going to be the same since covid19 and we have to face that fact with version and courage and stop looking at immediate oil gratification (which is a hoax in itself) with side effects that would destroy our fishing and tourism businesses all together.

Excellent Sherrill,
Our so-called leaders need to have the utmost pressure applied so that the rest of the world can see how inept, corrupt and useless they are for our people and our planet. This includes Minnis, and Romauld. This would be no Christmas present for The Bahamas. Let's end this nonsense now.

Thank you, Porcupine. I have to hope and pray to the Goddesses and Gods, Karma, the Divine Intelligence, Buddha and any other spiritual entities who will listen, that more than corruption, it is stupidity and willful ignorance. As the Minister for the Environment, FERREIRA is a monumental disappointment, as is the PM; on so many levels. This business about having to continue the policies of the previous administration gives me great pause.

We need women in government and there are many well-informed, well educated, empathetic, intelligent, bold women of integrity who need to step forward as candidates and get rid of these self interested, dim witted, visionless, greedy men.

It is a paradox that in this matriarchal society of the Bahamas, women are not well represented in government. We are hardly represented at all! This must change.

You make some good points here, but growing hemp and marijuana should play no part in dealing with our nation's problems.

Please see my reply below.

still waiting to see the terms of the license. what exactly is the monetary benefit to the bahamas as a whole and which bahamian (singular) is getting all the profit? Until then Minnis et. al. have lost all of my support.

The Royalties are 12.5 - 25% of their profit over and above projections, which they get to make up themselves. So basically, in practice, we are unlikely to get much.

To tribanon: And why, pray tell, should the Bahamas not be involved in growing hemp and marijuana? This gives me the idea that you may be ignorant and unaware of the innumerous scientific studies and reports of addiction as relates to marijuana. Hemp is a non-intoxicating form of cannabis and is the strongest natural fiber in the world. That's why it has been used since10,000 years ago. Perhaps you need to have a better understanding of both of these plants before you make such a pronouncement. I would be happy to enlighten you but you can go online and read all about it yourself, if you have an energetic and curious mind.

https://www.webmd.com/schizophrenia/sch…