20M means nothing without transparency, Duncombe says

Wed, Nov 25th 2015, 10:01 AM

While the Christie administration has vowed to earmark up to $20 million for environmental remediation efforts as part of the Bahamas Electricity Corporation's (BEC) restructuring, a noted environmentalist yesterday said the plans provide little comfort and demanded greater transparency over the true extent of damage in the Clifton Pier area.

Sam Duncombe, a director of environmental advocacy group Save The Bays and founder of reEarth, told Guardian Business that the recent remediation proposals outlined by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works Philip Brave Davis means little given the lack of public information regarding the government's current clean up efforts at the Clifton Pier area.

"The public has no idea what is going on at Clifton - what the extent of the continued leaks of oil are creating... because we've never seen any reports coming out of BEC or the government regarding the extent of the problem. Maybe $20 million will do it just for Clifton and maybe it won't," said Duncombe.

Speaking in the House of Assembly on Monday, Davis revealed that BEC's restructuring and the creation of Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) would cost $600 million, which the government plans to finance through rate reduction bonds. Up to $20 million of that money will be set aside for remediation efforts, though it remains uncertain which other areas will benefit from the allocation.

"These bonds also represent initial funds to commence an assessment of environmental conditions and an environmental remediation exercise, not exceeding $20 million. Remediation, particularly in the area of Clifton Pier, is essential," stated Davis.

In January, Prime Minister Perry Christie announced that the government would spend $10 million to launch remediation efforts at Clifton following several reported oil spills at the site. Those efforts included hiring firms to put in place containment booms and extract oil from the affected area. Government officials have maintained that BEC is not solely responsible for the Clifton spills, however.

"While this remediation effort will be ongoing, we anticipate that, with proper funding, Clifton can be protected from further environmental degradation. Right now, firms have been engaged to ensure booms are in place. Work has begun to extract oil, and an engineering formula is in place to extract thousands of gallons of oil," Davis said on Monday.

However, Duncombe called on the government to deliver on its mantra of transparency and accountability by elucidating the breakdown of remediation costs and strategies for the Clifton area.

"So say that we're going to throw $20 million at all these problems that we have, what, is that supposed to make us feel better? It doesn't - I want to know how that money is going to be used, what the extent of the problem is, and whether $20 million is, in fact, enough money to clean up all of the oil at Clifton," she said.

The government recently tabled the Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2015, the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (Amendment) Bill 2015, and the Electricity Rate Reduction Bond 2015 as part of its efforts to reform the energy sector.

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