By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The government is working to develop a new licensing regime for aragonite mining that is “almost ready” for unveiling, a Cabinet minister has revealed.

Romauld Ferreira, minister of the environment and housing, told Tribune Business that the proposed regulatory regime will be “a big one” as it seeks to replace the existing ad-hoc permitting regime that has been in place for decades.

“What I can foreshadow is the introduction of a regulatory regime to control mining, and by that I mean aragonite,” he disclosed. Mr Ferreira said mining applicants, once granted a licence, would be restricted to a specific location and how much they can take.

“Once you get a licence you can sell your product and true market forces take over,” he added. “We wanted to regulate that space as well... I’m working very hard on that and am committed to getting it done. We’ve been working on this for a long time. We’re almost ready. We’re very determined to regulate this space and have a proper national discussion where we ventilate all these issues.

“This discussion on our natural resources is actually very helpful and beneficial on a national level because we have what the rest of the world wants, so it’s up to us to build on the work our predecessors have done before us. No one group has a monopoly on love for The Bahamas. This is something of national interest for everybody.”

Without a regulatory regime that is established in law, Mr Ferreira said The Bahamas was in danger of permitting a situation where “everybody is eating at our table and we’re providing the food” when it comes to the country’s natural resources.