The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Several prominent activists yesterday denied they had been consulted on the environmental legislation tabled in the House of Assembly, and accused the government of exploiting Dorian.

Sam Duncombe, president of reEarth, said that she had not seen either the Ministry of The Environment Bill 2019 or The Environmental Planning and Protection Bill despite Romauld Ferreira, minister of the environment and housing, saying there had been “countless environmental groups who gave us feedback and direction”.

Save the Bays vice-president, Joseph Darville, also said he was made aware of the Bills yesterday morning by the minister after they had been tabled but had not seen them yet.

Mrs Duncombe, meanwhile, said: “The fact that this is already tabled in the House goes against Agenda 21, which the Bahamas signed on to. How can they possibly bring this to the House without bring it to the public for discussion?

“This will take a lot longer than a few minutes to address because we are going to have to check it against the existing Act to see what the changes actually mean. This is an underhanded play by the Government. No surprise there.

“During the last administration, Save the Bays effectively stopped the PLP (Progressive Liberal Party) from changing the law. Now the government, taking advantage of the mayhem caused by Dorian, is trying to weasel this in. It is a despicable move on our so-called democracy.

“They know everyone is still focused on the aftermath of Dorian, and most of the public will not rise to this issue. When the country should be focused on increasing environmental protection they are actively dismantling it. They must have taken a few chapters out of Trump’s play book.”

Mrs Duncombe added: “Now is not the time for division, which they are actively engaging in with these Bills. It’s an all-hands on deck situation. And for this to be coming from the minister who as a civilian railed against the Planning and Subdivision Act while a board member of Save the Bays is even more disturbing.

“Both these Bills should have been put forth to the public for consultation before they went to the house. They should not be in the House. When you bring them out in the middle of a crisis, and you are not giving people a chance to digest them and form sensible thoughts on it, that is just wrong on so many levels. “

Mrs Duncombe continued:: “We are still waiting for the Bills for the cruise ships; when Carnival Cruise Lines was caught dumping waste into our waters. We should be drafting legislation to deal with this kind of situation. We don’t have the kind of laws to allow us to go after Carnival for what they did to our country. This country is in deep trouble with all of what is going on.”

Asked by Tribune Business if she had any knowledge of these Bills being drafted or prepared, she added: “We have gotten no foreshadowing of these Bills being drafted or being prepared to be tabled in the House. I have also reached out to other environmental groups and they said that they have not seen these Bills either.”

The Ministry of The Environment Bill 2019 aims to establish the Ministry of the Environment on a solid legal foundation, and provide for the establishment and oversight of an Environmental Trust Fund.

The Environmental Planning and Protection Bill is to create the Department of Environmental Planning to provide for the prevention and control of pollution, and activities related to the conservation and sustainable use of the environment.