Thursday, July 21, 2022
By JADE RUSSELL
jrussell@tribunemedia.net
ENVIRONMENTALIST Joseph Darville says he was “horrified” that the “pristine” island of Exuma was marred by 30,000 gallons of oil spilled into its waters.
Mr Darville acknowledged that while this kind of incident can happen, the government should focus on prevention by implementing the necessary precautions.
“The problem is I have never seen the use of oil booms or containment of oil equipment in The Bahamas,” Mr Darville said, “not even Clifton where we’ve had significant-massive oil spillages over the years. If we command whatever equipment is necessary to contain the oil, then I don’t anticipate any sort of damage to the reputation of Exuma as being one of the most beautiful spots on planet earth.
“The fact is we got to have more commonsense so that we have the necessary equipment. Yes, we are going to continue to bring oil into the country. I mean that’s a necessity. But these types of accidents can happen and, therefore, we should have all the contingencies for sucking up oil,” the activist continued.
Recounting the massive oil spill in 2019 at the Equinor South Riding Point Facility in East Grand Bahama, Mr Darville stressed: “We have no contingency plans in this country. It took Equinor, a huge company like that, four days before they were able to command sufficient equipment and personnel from abroad to come into Grand Bahama.
“Equinor, which is still less than two thirds cleaned up, we know nothing about what penalty is going to be imposed on them. We have no access to information to find out whether or not Equinor has paid a fine for the damage,” he noted.
The activist said the incident speaks volumes that it will be absolutely “insane” and even “beyond stupid” to think the country should allow oil drilling.
“This is now the second event of an oil spillage. Which signals to us that we have no business even thinking about dealing with oil.”
Ahead of Mr Darville’s comments, Exuma’s Island Administrator Cristian Palacious said officials on the island had managed to contain the area of the spill.
When asked about some of the local businesses complaining of the smell of the oil spilled, Ms Palacious responded: “There’s a team coming down, environmental health is a part of that team, the experts who deal in this area. So, once they come, I think they will be able to advise on how we can deal with that.”
A couple in Georgetown, Exuma, Michael and Monica Minns, mentioned to The Tribune that there was a strong smell of oil in the area, however where they were located they could not see any residue in the water.
• See Business Section for more on the oil spill.
Comments
JanetG says...
Wonder what method are they using to remove the spill? Floating booms, skimming or by sorbents? Or other?
Posted 21 July 2022, 4:16 p.m. Suggest removal
GodSpeed says...
Can't clean up an oil spill but want to do oil drilling and exploration. idiots.
Posted 21 July 2022, 5:28 p.m. Suggest removal
killemwitdakno says...
I'm impressed that it was barricaded in the bay. Stark difference across the line.
Posted 21 July 2022, 8:26 p.m. Suggest removal
zemilou says...
A fortuitous circumstance. The location of the line rupture and steady onshore winds pushed the spill into the small bay. If winds had been, say, offshore or parallel to the coast, the spill would have been more widespread.
Posted 22 July 2022, 8:55 a.m. Suggest removal
zemilou says...
As with gas pumps at service stations and pipelines for transporting fuels, etc, the tanker should have had an emergency shutoff valve that activated when there was an unexpected change in pressure. This spill could have been avoided with appropriate safety equipment. Was the fuel being transferred at night and unattended?
Posted 22 July 2022, 8:52 a.m. Suggest removal
ThisIsOurs says...
Ah so that's how you tell. I thought there had to be a way to confirm that what was being transferred was also being received at the destination in "real" time. I agree with you, noone must have been watching. Literally and figuratively, where is NEMA?
Posted 22 July 2022, 2:55 p.m. Suggest removal
tribanon says...
Whatever equipment, personnel and training costs our government must incur annually to mitigate and remediate the effects of such environmental disasters should be borne by those importing and then selling the highly profitable oil and other fuel products in our country.
Global oil conglomerates like Shell and their distribution partners like FOCOL/Sun Oil are renowned for the many environmental disasters their business operations cause around the world, and they all too often leave the taxpayers of smaller nations they can easily bully (like The Bahamas) with the hefty clean-up bill.
Posted 22 July 2022, 12:57 p.m. Suggest removal
tribanon says...
P.S.: Better still, government should require all such enterprises like D&T Shipping and FOCOL/Sun Oil to undergo at least an annual independent inspection check (at their cost) to verify they have properly resourced disaster mitigation and remediation plans within our country, including not only necessary equipment, but also adequately trained personnel. This should be commensurate with the environmental risks inherently posed by the nature and scale of the enterprise's business operations.
Posted 22 July 2022, 1:22 p.m. Suggest removal
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