The Tribune

People familiar with The Bahamas who have also travelled to other comparable holiday places know we have something special to offer here. We are blessed with the beauty of nature and an equable climate with fine beaches surrounded by what those who have been to the Exumas claim to be the clearest waters on the planet.

As well as sun, sea and sand in abundance, we offer luxurious hotels and an interesting mix of an unusual history and culture and untold opportunities for ecotourism with varied flora and fauna as well as fishing, boating, diving and snorkelling together with all manner of other sporting activities. Some claim the mix is unsurpassed elsewhere in the world for this type of tourist destination.

The Bahamas also provides a variety of sophistication and remoteness - from Atlantis and the newly-opened Baha Mar in New Providence to a fishing lodge in far-off Crooked Island where the dedicated fisherman can indulge himself in solitary splendour. But what also differentiates us from others is our geographical location that makes us accessible and affordable to visitors from our giant neighbour and the largest economy in the world who come here in droves.

It follows that our nation’s priority should be to protect and preserve the unique environment that make us such an attractive place to visit, and we are fortunate to have an effective Bahamas National Trust as well as other bodies like Save the Bays together with those grouped under the relatively new Environmental Alliance.

They play an important role and have recently opposed construction in Bimini, the planned Oban oil refinery in Grand Bahama and now the proposal for offshore oil drilling in Bahamian waters. They are against fossil fuels when significant opportunities for renewable energy exist and are also concerned about climate change and the potentially disastrous effects of rising ocean levels on parts of our island chain.

They may be right about the potential risks to the marine ecosystem of an oil refinery in Grand Bahama and have chided the Government for the lack of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). They are similarly opposed to the LNG power plant at Clifton. We do not believe, however, that their opposition to offshore oil can be justified because the risks of potential pollution and other damage are minimal and the economic and social benefits are potentially enormous.

While alternative renewable sources are gradually being developed, the hard fact is that oil is currently essential to the world economy. The demand is huge because it is the primary fuel source for transportation and crude oil is used for manufacture of a variety of products like plastics and fertilisers.

Nonetheless, even though the risks are small and the Grand Bahama Bank would anyway protect our other islands from the effects of any oil slick, if the exploratory drilling by the Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) results in the commercial production of oil, it is important that safeguards against possible pollution and the effects of possible oil spills should be in place.

Drilling is in a relatively small area across the Old Bahamian Channel more than 100 miles southwest of the island of Andros. Reportedly, an EIA has already been done followed by an Environmental Management Plan covering the potential impact on the environment. Moreover, although oil spills, especially from collisions or other accidents involving oil tankers, can never be ruled out, to date there have been no serious incidents involving the many tankers which regularly pass through Bahamian waters.

It is likely offshore oil, if managed properly, would transform the Bahamian economy. Over the years, successive governments have been guilty of economic mismanagement that has led to increasing deficits and an unprecedented level of national debt; and the poor state of the economy was highlighted again in last week’s Budget.

In such circumstances, it would be foolhardy for any government to fail to take advantage of a potential oil bonanza, particularly when the risk to the environment is judged to be so low. But the views of those who oppose it on environmental grounds should not be dismissed, and a measure of consensus is desirable on such an important issue.

We believe, therefore, that even though the Government has already granted leases for exploratory drilling, it would nonetheless be wise to mount some sort of national consultation exercise in order to achieve public support.

If it turns out that oil can be produced in commercial quantities, the greater public concern is likely to be about the scope for backhanders, kickbacks and dubious consultancy fees.

So, to fulfil the Prime Minister’s promises about transparency in the fight against corruption, it will be essential to establish a framework and mechanism of guarantees and checks and balances to ensure the public purse benefits as it should – given our history, this means keeping the hands of the political class well out of the cookie jar.