BNT: Allowing oil exploration is hypocrisy

The Bahamas National Trust (BNT) has spoken out against plans for oil exploration in The Bahamas, saying in a statement issued on Friday that it is “categorically opposed” to the upcoming drilling and called allowing it “a careless signal of hypocrisy to the world”.

“A growing number of Bahamians are clearly opposed to and not willing to accept the risks associated with an oil industry in The Bahamas,” it said.

“The prevailing view is there is simply too much at stake.

“As a staunch defender of the Bahamian environment, the BNT is categorically opposed to oil exploration in The Bahamas. The BNT stands with every Bahamian speaking out against proposed oil exploration in our ocean nation.”

The statement added, “We risk turning our coastal tourist destination into an oil nation.

“The nation’s tourism industry relies on clean, swimmable waters and healthy ocean ecosystems to thrive. Oil drilling and exploration threaten clean coastal economies.”

Next month, the Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) is expected to begin drilling an exploratory well. The project has been met with significant opposition in the public sphere, with many people expressing concern over the potential harm to the natural environment.

The BNT said the oil industry’s poor track record in protecting the environment presents too large a risk to The Bahamas.

“Bahamian communities rely on healthy ocean ecosystems to support jobs in fishing, recreation, and tourism,” it said.

“The oil industry’s track record in often failing to protect the environment effectively makes such developments too big a risk to be allowed in our fragile ocean nation.

“An oil spill can irreversibly damage our oceans, threaten our tourism industry, and our very way of life. The 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon disaster proves that no amount of reward from oil drilling is worth the risks of a potential disaster.”

The BNT noted that the proposed initial well is “incredibly close” to the Cay Sal Bank, a marine-protected area and, according to the BNT, “one of the most ecologically productive and economically important marine systems in the country”.

“The Cay Sal MPA protects thriving marine life inclusive of commercially important species, most notably one of the last remaining viable populations of the queen conch,” the statement said.

“This large MPA also protects crucial marine mammal habitats, coral reefs, seagrass meadows and open ocean ecosystems.”

Eric Carey, Executive Director, Bahamas National Trust said any pollution of the area would be devastating for the entire country. 

The BNT said that given The Bahamas’ particular vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, to allow oil drilling would be hypocritical. 

“The country, our people, and our way of life could disappear if we are not successful as a global community in reversing the factors of a changing climate.

“The country would be sending a careless signal of hypocrisy to the world.

“The benefits of fossil fuels are finite and insignificant compared to the cost of global climate change. We should not compound the damage of increased storm activity and sea levels due to global climate change with the risks associated with oil exploration.

“Drilling for oil would require us to ignore the damage of Hurricane Dorian and other storms. We would be overlooking the harm done to Grand Bahama in the Equinor spill.

“We would be turning a blind eye to obvious risks to our own well-being.

“The Bahamas has stood in the presence of the United Nations, demanding urgent action to combat climate change.

“We cannot, therefore, cry out to the world that our country is being severely threatened by climate change, and still allow the exploration for fossils fuels, one of the main drivers of climate change on the planet.”

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