Environmental group Save The Bays (STB) is calling for a pause in the sale of Equinor's South Riding Point facility until the company has completed the cleaning of the oil spill caused by Hurricane Dorian.
STB said in a press statement that it has overseen the cleanup effort by Equinor since 2019, and maintains that the cleanup is not complete at the compound.
Equinor revealed in a statement on Tuesday that it has entered an agreement with European liquid fuels terminal operator Liwathon for the sale of the South Riding Point facility. Equinor explains in that statement that it completed the cleanup of hydrocarbons in the area outside the facility, but does not mention the state of the facility itself.
In September 2019, the South Riding Point terminal was in the direct path of Hurricane Dorian, a violent Category 5 storm, and sustained extensive damage, including an oil spill which affected the terminal site and a forest area northeast of the terminal," the Equinor statement said.
"Since then, extensive clean-up operations have been performed by Equinor in close collaboration with Bahamian authorities. The clean-up operations outside the fence were concluded in March 2021, and extensive testing of the groundwater outside the terminal has shown no sign of hydrocarbon deposits."
Guardian Business reached out to Equinor by email for further comment on the state of the compound, but a reply was not received before publication yesterday.
STB claims old spilled oil still appears to be on the compound.
"Oil appears to remain settled in waste wells, untreated since the 2019 spill, which can compromise the aquatic and water quality of the surrounding wetlands - which is an area where the water table is less than four feet below the surface," the STB statement noted.
"It is our assessment that the Equinor site represents a serious and ongoing ecological and public health danger, which must be fully and openly addressed before the facility is allowed to change hands.
"STB is therefore calling on the government not to sanction any sale of Equinor, unless and until it can be confirmed that the site has been returned to its pre-spill condition.
"To this end, we are calling for a thorough and transparent evaluation process that includes the environmental community and other stakeholders in Grand Bahama, as well as a full and transparent report for the Grand Bahama community."
Equinor said in its release on Tuesday that the sale of the property has already been approved by government.
STB contends that a government that has at its core message environmental protection and sustainability should not allow the company to be sold without ensuring it has met certain environmental requirements.
"The Davis administration has repeatedly claimed that climate resilience and environmental sustainability are to be the cornerstones of its legacy," STB said.
"Allowing a company that has spilled millions of gallons of oil into the ground in a sensitive and ecologically significant area, to kick this toxic can down the road to a new owner, hardly meets that standard."
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