In response to multiple oil spills this year alone the Ministry of Transport and Aviation plans to completely review legislation regulating the oil industry, according to Transport and Aviation Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin.
She made the announcement yesterday during a meeting between executives of the Freeport Harbour Container Port, the Bahamas Oil Refining Company (BORCO) and senior government officials.
Martin said the government welcomes the industry, but it must strike a balance between protecting the marine environment and the industry's business interests.
"It's a much larger picture because the waters of our country belong to the people of this country and so we have to protect it," Martin said.
Last Saturday, BORCO reported an oil spill from a pipeline containing oily residue in the vicinity of Pinder's Point, Grand Bahama. It is unclear how much fuel spilled.
The investigation is still ongoing, Martin revealed, noting that BORCO's divers are still searching for what may have caused the spill.
"Their divers are down and we are monitoring and watching to see whether there is any issue relative to the pipes under the sea," Martin said.
"So far they have indicated that there is nothing of that nature, and so there is not a final outcome yet.
"We will be monitoring it because while we are partners in this issue, we still have regulatory oversight."
The first BORCO spill for 2013 happened on January 20 when 210 gallons of diesel fuel spilled in waters off Grand Bahama while a ship was being refueled at BORCO.
These were not the only oil spills in recent months.
Last December, a tier 1 oil spill occurred off the coast of Grand Bahama, after a Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) container vessel reported a "slow leak".
Shortly after that spill, an estimated 70,000 gallons of fuel spilled into the ground from a Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) fuel storage facility at Rock Sound, Eleuthera.
Martin said although those incidents were not major, "the alarm has been raised".
She said her ministry will explore how cost could be recovered when government has to expend resources in oil spill investigations.
"We have to get an aircraft to fly over [and] we have to mobilize teams. We are trying to see if there is an understanding about how costs can be recovered in those instances."

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian