The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

THE Government has been provided with an update on the Bahamas Building Code review that is being undertaken by an international engineering consultant, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.

Alfred Sears KC, minister for public works and utilities, speaking at a workshop on climate resilient coastal management and infrastructure, said an enhanced Building Code is among the “adaptation measures” that the Government is seeking to implement to combat climate change fall-out in Hurricane Dorian’s wake.

“With the consultants we have been looking at the building code. Mott McDonald have just provided an update on the review of the Building code and the recommendations that they will be making to us,” he added.

Once Mott McDonald submits its final Building Code report “we will engage with various stakeholders and get their input, then consider the feedback of stakeholders,” Mr Sears added. “And then we will take a number of recommendations for amendments to the Cabinet for the Cabinet’s consideration.

“Construction, to a great extent, because we are not manufacturing the material ourselves, depends on the global stream of commerce. And when you have disruption in the supply chain due to the war in Ukraine, the pandemic and other factors, it contributes to the increase in costs. We are therefore doing the very best that we can to source material from more closer locations, so that we are not as impacted by the transportation disruption.”

Also under review is the level of degradation and erosion at Junkanoo Beach, located between the Pointe and Arawak Cay at the western entrance to downtown Nassau. Mr Sears said the Government had noticed the level of breakwater protection from rough seas at the entrance to Nassau Harbour is inadequate, resulting in damage to the seawall and erosion of the beach.

“The whole point of doing the base study is, at the end of that, to come up with concrete measures to improve and strengthen the boardwalk such as more effective seawalls, such as more breakwater infrastructure to keep the high tides away, and also measures that will minimise and, hopefully, eliminate the sediment movement because we are losing a lot at the beach,” Mr Sears said.

“In order for the Government to design effective public policy in this area, there need to be baseline studies and that is what is being designed. We will have studies in Grand Bahama, Andros and Long Island to inform public policy so that we can build with more resilience, and we can ensure sustainability for the future.”