The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

I write this as the Stena IceMAX oil drilling ship is heading here to The Bahamas. I write this as a plea to the last people who seem to be able to stop this madness. Given what we know today about the use of fossil fuels, I wonder how we have gotten to this point. There is now an abundance of evidence that the use of fossil fuels is doing terrible damage to our planet, most especially our climate. And, most critically for us, threatening the very existence of The Bahamas. Yes, it is the eleventh hour. And, I do wish the decision not to drill came sooner. However, it now seems to be out of the hands of the scientists and those voices of reason who object to this very risky and dangerous venture.

It is because of the abundance of very recently emerging science and knowledge that I ask those in positions of power in our judicial system to gather this recent evidence, the most recent data, and give The Bahamas a stay of execution. Yes, this is what it seems like to me. We no longer lack the data that our planet, especially our own country, is at great peril due specifically to our use of fossil fuels. The scientists at the major oil companies have known about the realities of climate change for five decades now, but billions of dollars have been spent to mislead the public. This is a fact.

Today, in 2020, we have thousands of scientists globally who are documenting the very disconcerting evidence that our living world is suffering the effects of this continued burning of fossil fuels. There is little doubt now that smoking cigarettes is not good for the human body. Yet, there was a time when even the medical community touted smoking as good for digestion, stress relief, and weight loss. This was in many of our lifetimes.

So too, have there been many, many cases of exoneration of people who were scheduled to be executed for crimes they did not commit. The judges stayed their executions because of new evidence. Well, there is an abundance of new evidence that sheds a bright light on the realities of fossil fuel use. It is this abundance of evidence, much of it coming to light in the last two years alone, which is equivalent to a doctor’s diagnosis of cancer. Those who study this issue carefully, and have been doing so for many years, know that time is of the essence. It is this sense of urgency, of watching the realities rapidly unfold around us, that is driving those with this knowledge to fight for eliminating the use of fossil fuels.

It has only been in the recent years when the ability to predict and forecast hurricanes has been in existence. The last few years alone has brought unprecedented abilities to more accurately predict a hurricane’s course. Some of our forefathers and mothers were not so fortunate to have this information as they set out to sea, into the paths of these deadly hurricanes. Today, armed with this new knowledge, we tell people to evacuate, to seek higher ground, to get out of the way of the impending storm. Not to warn our people of the impending storm would be worse than just irresponsible, it would be criminal. Wouldn’t it?

The arguments being made by BPC, Bahamas Petroleum Corporation, are shallow, dated and do not address the realities faced by the people of The Bahamas. BPC, and their investors, are preying upon us, leading us to believe that the great risks are worth the pie-in-the-sky monies they say are coming, someday, to The Bahamas. The truth is, the risks now are so great that the decision to drill for oil in The Bahamas is akin to selling our soul. We now have no excuse. We now have the undeniable evidence that the burning of fossil fuels is destroying our fabric of life, putting our children’s future smack dab in harm’s way. Is there a greater crime? Is there?

As the judges are apt to say, “Ignorance of the law, is not an excuse to break it.” So too, our judges can no longer say that they didn’t know the risks to the very existence of The Bahamas in their decision to allow BPC to continue with their drilling. Were the justices in The Bahamas so inclined, they too could know what the scientific reports and prognosis of this very recent data are all pointing to. Perhaps our justices already do know this. While the justices are used to having lawyers feed them the new evidence, what is required now is that we ask the justices to do their own homework on this globally important issue. And, be prepared, for this evidence is coming to us in droves.

The forces arrayed against us, urging us not to do the right thing, are strong, powerful and rich. So too were the forces which profited from slavery. Though clear to anyone with an ounce of decency that enslaving another human being was wrong, it took a few hundred years to abolish this practice, this crime. Think about this for a minute. Think about the political power, the economic power and the power over the legal system that allowed slavery to persist for so long. It is worth a practical comparison.

The oil companies, and by extension their owners and managers, are the most powerful economic and political forces on the planet. If they are acting in our best interest, it would be the first time in history, given the abundance of evidence that the oil companies have done nothing but work to benefit their own profits at the expense of our living world. We are part and parcel of that living world. The fight against the fossil fuel industry is akin to fighting against slavery. All decent people must recognise this injustice.

We know the planet is heating up, faster and faster each year. It is beyond discussion. The last few years have been the hottest on record. Look it up. We know that millions of people die each year from the polluted air we breathe due to burning of fossil fuels. Look it up. We know that the oceans are heating up and that the abundance of marine life is dwindling, due primarily to the burning of fossil fuels. Look it up.

We know that the sea level is rising, faster each year. Threatening the very existence of our island nation. Look it up.

We know that the raging wildfires and super-charged hurricanes are the result of global warming. Look it up.

We know that the most eminent scientists in the world are now using the term Runaway Climate Change. Some of these processes are now no longer linear, but exponential.

We know that the driver for our most existential threat here in The Bahamas is the burning of fossil fuels.

We know these things.

We know them in the same way that we knew slavery was wrong, long before it was abolished. Those paying attention to the facts, knew that smoking was deadly, long before the cigarette companies were forced to admit it. We know the risks to our world, our country, by continuing on our fossil-fueled road to hell, but still are stuck on the advertising and misinformation being put out by the oil companies.

I am asking for the Justices in The Bahamas to come together for the good of this nation. There is no greater case to be made for allowing this new evidence to be considered. The environmental assessments done by BPC are outdated and incomplete. There is today, in 2020, an overwhelming abundance of evidence which MUST be considered for justice to prevail. To ignore the most recent science, putting the existence of our entire country in peril, is a crime beyond comprehension.

When considering the duty of the justice system, it is well to remember something. Just before slavery was illegal, it was legal. The Justices who broke from the rest of their peers, going beyond precedent, were those who truly delivered justice. I am trying to imagine the world today, had not these brave Justices voted with their conscience, to do what was right. I am trying to imagine if they only considered the money, ignoring basic human decency.

Drilling for oil in The Bahamas is an irresponsible, dangerous and a completely unjust activity for the people of The Bahamas. It must be stopped. I am pleading with those in power in The Bahamas to stand up and say so. It is never too late to do the right thing.

NORMAN TRABULSY Jr

Andros

December 13, 2020.