By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Environment Minister Romauld Ferreira criticised the absence of a public environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch, citing it as part of a larger issue of secrecy, lack of transparency, and accountability on environmental matters.

He referred to the Environmental Planning and Protection Act of 2019, which mandates that all EIAs be made public.

The former FNM minister made his comments before SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster’s successful landing off the coast of the Exumas last week.

Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper had previously said The Bahamas has taken “measurable precautions” to safeguard its waters and marine ecosystems by working with environmental experts to monitor potential impacts.

However, Mr Ferreira said: “There must be some environmental impact from the debris from the Space X rocket falling into our waters and from out of space.”

“We are known for having a beautiful archipelago, but we’re using our waters to receive essentially space debris or space garbage after their launch and we’re calling it space tourism.”

“It’s kind of like accepting nuclear waste and saying that you’re in the nuclear energy business, but we’re, what we’re really doing is receiving debris, and that is because our country is mostly ocean, but there’s an impact and that impact ought to have been disclosed.”

He said that once the EIA was completed, public consultations should have been held in Exuma, the area most affected. Additionally, the assessment documents should have been made accessible to Exuma and New Providence residents, as required by law. He also noted that the documents should have been published online to ensure all Bahamians had access.

He stressed that the law requires an EIA to be publicly available and mandates a town meeting for projects that could significantly impact the environment, such as the planned SpaceX landings. He expressed further concern as The Bahamas prepares to host the first of 20 planned landings this year.

He pointed out that landing space boosters and rocket debris is not an exact science and noted that SpaceX has had previous accidents where debris landed unexpectedly, including a fragment found in Kenya. He questioned the potential risks to Exuma residents, particularly if debris were to land on inhabited areas.

The EIA, he said, would help determine which cays, homes, businesses, and livelihoods could be most affected.

He also raised broader concerns about the government’s handling of environmental issues, citing the 2022 diesel spill in Exuma, where he claimed the government kept details of a fine imposed in the matter a secret. He accused the administration of secrecy, a lack of transparency, and a failure to be accountable on environmental matters.