If reEarth Director Sam Duncombe had her way, there would be no construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in The Bahamas, period. As she continues her staunch opposition to such a facility, the environmentalist blasted the Progressive Liberal Party and the Free National Movement last night for not adequately addressing the issues regarding LNG in The Bahamas.
Addressing members of the Nassau Yacht Club, Mrs Duncombe said recent public statements made by members of the government and the official opposition would lead Bahamians to believe that neither party is willing to accept responsibility for attracting LNG companies to The Bahamas.
“Where does this leave us as a country,” Mrs Duncombe questioned. “Is this project being pushed through government and [is it] trying to escape the public scrutiny that it wholly deserves?”
Since submitting their initial proposal to construct an LNG facility in The Bahamas at Ocean Cay in 2001, Virginia-based AES Corp continues to wait patiently for the official nod from the government, despite opposition from reEarth and residents of nearby Cat Cay.
According to Mrs Duncombe, Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson has recently tried to lay the decision for accepting LNG at the feet of the FNM by saying: “This administration was simply honouring the LNG policy that was put in place by the former administration, which gave agreements in principle to three LNG plants subject to certain criteria.”
Mrs Duncombe added, however, that as far as reEarth sees it, the Christie government is accountable for its own decisions. She charged that the PLP is the government of the day and they have the power to allow the project to proceed or not.
“This decision cannot be thrown in the FNM’s lap,” she said.
The reEarth Director also criticised the FNM for its recent “flaccid” statements about LNG. She said the Party’s acceptance of an LNG facility, [which is] dependent upon “safeguards,” puts the Bahamian people between “a rock and a hard place” and begs the question of whether or not both parties are listening to the voice of the people.
“The voice of the people has not been welcomed in the process of approving LNG,” Mrs Duncombe claimed.
“The voice of the people has not been listened to regarding safety or environmental issues, and this lays bare the lack of respect for a democratic society by both political parties in The Bahamas.”
Mrs Duncombe believes that an assessment of the LNG project, to date, continues to be “cursory, inconclusive, inadequate, incomplete and contradictory.” She also blamed the BEST Commission for not presenting a “true and balanced” account of their findings.
By TAMARA McKENZIE, Nassau Guardian Political Editor
