Tractebel North America Inc., a Belgian company that wants the Bahamas government’s permission for a liquefied natural gas pipeline project, is reportedly facing fines from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for damaging corals.
The company scraped, crushed or dislodged 29 corals while taking samples of the ocean floor, according to the department.
The tests involved taking samples along the pipeline route to make sure that rock under the reefs was stable enough for the company to drill a path for the pipeline, it was reported.
A Florida press report also said that Tractebel never notified the department, preventing the agency from taking steps to prevent further damage.
The department has proposed a fine of $8,400 and twice that amount in coral restoration work to make up for the damage.
But in that same press report, the company said it had not done nothing wrong.
Tractebel has said it plans to call for bids sometime in the second quarter of this year on construction contracts for its $600 million LNG project.
The idea is to start construction by early in the third quarter, according to company officials. Construction will take 32 to 36 months with operations starting up in mid-2007.
The Tractebel project will supply 832 million cubic feet a day of natural gas to southern Florida via a pipeline from its proposed LNG receiving terminal.
The US section of the 24-inch pipeline, called Calypso, is 42.5 miles from the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) boundary. The pipeline is 90 miles in total length.
On the Bahamas side, Tractebel has submitted its final environmental assessment to the authorities and is working with the Bahamas Environmental Science and Technology Commission (BEST) which is said to be reviewing the EIA.
Reports of Tractebel’s environmental abuse would probably strengthen the argument made by Ambassador to the Environment Keod Smith who has said that the Bahamas government should not approve any of the projects until adequate environmental policy is in place.
Two other companies are also asking the government to give them permission to lay liquefied natural gas pipelines between the Bahamas and Florida.
According to Leslie Miller, Minister of Trade and Industry, the AES Corporation is closest to getting the go-ahead on the Bahamas end for its project.
The AES pipeline would connect with, and receive natural gas transported by a 40-mile pipeline. The pipeline would deliver natural gas to markets in Florida and over the interstate pipeline grid to other parts of the country.
AES has said that it plans to have the pipeline start delivering gas to customers by 2005.
The third company, El Paso, recently reported that it had reached agreement with an affiliate of FPL Group, a natural gas company based in Juno Beach, Florida, whereby FPL Group Resources has an option to purchase the development rights of the proposed project in the Bahamas.
The Bahama Journal
