The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Government has been warned that “a sense of chaos” exists at several key Family Island airports, which lack the necessary management policies and structures to deal with environmental and social concerns.

A July 21, 2016, report submitted to both the Christie administration and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) found that several airports suffered from “general disorder and lack of cleanliness”, with hazardous and flammable materials not property stored or disposed of.

The report, compiled by ALG Transportation Infrastructure and Logistics, assesses the Exuma and North Eleuthera airports, plus their Abaco and Treasure Cay counterparts.

All four have been identified as airports suitable for public-private partnerships (PPPs) between the Government and private investors, as part of an IDB-assisted project to upgrade the Bahamas’ airport infrastructure and secure tourism’s sustainability.

Overhauling all the Family Island airports has been pegged as an $180 million investment, and the ALG report’s findings indicate there is much work to do.

“The environmental management of the airport of Exuma (GGT or Georgetown) is not adequate,” it said bluntly.

“The terminal spaces are saturated due to the lack of space. Given the absence of a structured environmental and social management system, a certain sense of chaos can be perceived from the general disorder and lack of cleanliness in some of the facilities.”

ALG added that there was an absence of “structured mechanisms for an efficient management of airport infrastructure”, with “poor organisation, order and cleanliness” making it difficult for the Georgetown airport’s emergency services to respond to aircraft incidents.

In particular, the airport’s fire station was described as “obsolete”, with conditions unsuitable for emergency responders due to poor maintenance and inefficient use of space.

“The cluttering of materials inside the fire station means that it is not possible to distinguish between materials and waste,” the ALG report said.

“There is no control over the entry of materials. The expiration date of materials is not taken into account. Flammable and hazardous materials are not distinguishable from other materials that have no direct environmental impact.

“In the event of an emergency, there would be no direct access to the materials and individual personal equipment to ensure immediate operation. The materials and first responders are not clearly identifiable.”

The ALG report said the inability to identify potential risks, and their environmental and social impacts, led to “poor management” of Exuma’s prime international gateway, and the first impression for visitors.

“There are no equipment and infrastructure maintenance programmes, which stresses the infrastructure environment’s obsolescence,” the report added.

“The absence of an environmental and social management system to document the operational and administrative management is a key impediment to the smooth operation of the airport infrastructure and operational safety.”

ALG also noted that waste had been allowed to build up in different areas at the airport outside the terminal, and was likely to include hazardous, flammable and construction materials.

“Corroded metal structures and other accumulation of materials can be found beside the perimeter fence, which generates direct impact on the outside of the airport perimeter and on other properties,” the report found.

“It was observed that warehouses are a mess and out of control, and there are no conservation criteria applied to materials and equipment.”

ALG contrasted the state of the commercial (public)airport with conditions at Odyssey, the nearby fixed base operator (FBO), which had “good quality facilities” and elements natural to Exuma incorporated in its design.

In North Eleuthera, the ALG investigators found an environmental and social management framework was similarly lacking.

“As far as competitiveness and organisational capacity concerns, both the management and staff are qualified and perform tasks properly,” the report concluded.

“However, the lack of procedures and management tools for monitoring and controlling environmental and social renders the management inefficient and insufficient.”

ALG noted that there was a lack of buildings and facilities devoted to emergency response and preparedness at North Eleuthera, and expressed concern at the absence of measures to deal with spills at the fuel plant, and “poor maintenance and safety of the potable well water”.

“Another issue is the waste generated by private stakeholders, in areas where obsolete equipment and waste materials are stored. There is a large area where all sorts of waste has been dumped, from construction materials to hazardous waste,” the report revealed.

“One of the most common issues of the management of materials and equipment (which does not justify this unorderly and neglected storage) is that airport facility operators are not capable of managing government property.

“So that any piece of equipment that is inventoried can be dumped without prior authorisation, which leads to the accumulation of old materials at various points in the airport grounds.”

While praising Marsh Harbour’s new airport infrastructure, ALG added: “A deeper look into the airport’s day-to-day permitted identifying unresolved management deficiencies with the new infrastructure.

“The operational launch of the new airport requires the establishment of plans, programs and procedures for the systematisation of data and compliance with ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) ICAO standards.”

As for Treasure Cay airport, the ALG report found it relies upon a one-man emergency response team.

“The health and safety conditions of workers are compromised in the fire station,” the report added. “The spaces are right-sized as regards airport operations, but are cluttered with materials and equipment in a state of disuse, with inadequately stored materials, waste that has not been properly managed (hazardous waste, special waste) and with flammable materials.

“Many different types of waste, both inside and outside the terminal, could be observed. Waste is not selected previously, nor is hazardous waste stored adequately (batteries, deposits with flammable materials... are dumped outdoors).”