The Tribune

BY DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FREEPORT – In light of the recent oil spills off Grand Bahama, former chief public analyst Mike Wallace facilitated a workshop on emergency preparedness and disaster management with a focus on oil spills.

There have been several oil spill incidents in the Pinder’s Point area. The Bahamas Oil Refinery Company (BORCO) has taken responsibility for three of the recent spills this year in that area.

When asked about the recent spills, Mr Wallace said: “A lot of things are happening that in that area could be avoided.”

Although there has been a call by residents for relocation of the settlement – which is also plagued by ongoing chemical emissions from the nearby industrial plants – Mr Wallace believes that both can co-exist.

“I firmly believe that residents and industrial companies… can co-exist if they do so with mutual respect,” he said.

Mr Wallace said that oil spills or any disaster can have a very negative impact on the community, but the important objective is prevention, volunteerism, and quick mitigation. 

He said Terreve College agreed to hold a series of forums on Saturdays at the Bishop Michael Eldon High School to promote volunteerism, nationalism, and national pride.

The first forum was on the changing image of agriculture in the Bahamas.

The second addressed the nature and development of community-based emergency preparedness and response plans.

Mr Wallace said he believes that the forum series is timely. 

“We have had issues with oil spills and the idea is to show that when scientific methods and methods of technology are brought to bear on the management of the spill, the work is that much easier to manage and the effect of the oil spill will be short and less of a disaster.

“We focus on the mantra that only human beings can prevent disasters. Emergencies will always take place, but it need not be a disaster or catastrophe if you got a good plan and a good trained team to manage the incident,” he said.