Govt
breaking law—Prof Kenny
By Kayode James
The Trinidad Guardian
Port
Spain
Petroleumworldtt.com
12 10 06
Professor
Julian Kenny emerged as one of the more vocal protesters
of the Government’s smelter plans during last
week’s symposium, where he presented compelling
points against the construction of the controversial
facility. The presentation by the prominent environmentalist
entitled Heavy Industrialisation in Trinidad - the
expansion into the south-western peninsula and the
problems of processes constitution, law, national
policy, international obligations and carrying capacity
is summarised below.
Political
note
At
its core, Kenny’s presentation argued that
the very process used to establish the planned aluminium-based
industrial estates in the south-western peninsula
was flawed at best, and arguably illegal.
According
to Kenny, Cabinet’s unilateral decision to
establish the smelter runs contrary to several laws
and policies, including the Town and Country Planning
Act, the Environmental Management Act (2000), and
the Constitution itself.
Cabinet,
Kenny explained, neglected its constitutional obligation
to account to Parliament, particularly due to its
failure to ensure that members of the National Energy
Corporation and the National Gas Company answered
questions posed to them by a Joint Select Committee
chaired by Senator Mary King.
Kenny
wrote, “Cabinet has refused to acknowledge
receipt of an alternative regional developmental
plan conceived by citizens, NGOs and CBOs based
on sustainable use of the renewable natural resources
of the south-western peninsula.” The move
conflicts with the National Environmental Policy
(2006), which states that community groups and NGOs
“should be given an opportunity to share in
managing their local resources and the right to
participate in decisions.”
Kenny
also pointed out the smelter plans conflict with
several international treaties, including the United
Nations Convention of Biological Diversity and the
Convention on Wetlands of International Importance
Especially as Waterfowl Habitat.
Legal
and technical loopholes characterised each of the
five treaties identified, however, as was apparent
with the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention
on Climate Change (1999), which seeks to reduce
the level of greenhouse gas emissions. T&T was
an early signatory of the convention, but has not
yet determined a limit for its industrial emission
of the harmful gases.
Geographical
implications
Kenny
briefly outlined a wide cross-section of the flora
and fauna of the peninsula’s ecosystem, and
described the Carlisle and Quarahoon Rivers as the
country’s only stable examples of tropical
intermittent streams. Among the unique species of
plants and wildlife he listed were the Oncidium
Lanceanum orchid, the Cedros Balisier, the silver
hatchet fish, and a local species of capybara.
“The
peninsula would meet all the requirements for declaration
as an Environmentally Sensitive Area under the Environmental
Management Act and fulfil requirements of obligations
under the United Nations Convention on Biological
Diversity” he wrote.
Kenny
dismissed the current scope of the Environmental
Impact Assessment, saying that a proper scientific
survey of the area would require more time and expertise.
Such
scientific investigation, he explained, would also
be necessary to further satisfy the requirements
of the Town and Country Planning Act as well as
the lapsed Planning and Development Bill of 2001.
Kenny
added to the discourse surrounding the state of
local agriculture by condemning the industrialisation
of the south-west peninsula as a “further
alienation of agricultural land that would seriously
compromise the country’s agricultural future.”
“Many
human settlements in the area will be seriously
affected by displacement and lifestyle changes from
rural self-sufficiency to factory wage dependency.”
Small-scale
operations
Kenny
acknowledged the significant advances made in the
pollution reduction technology used by the aluminium
industry, but questioned Alcoa’s stated intent
to export spent pot liners.
“It
would be unreasonable for the Environmental Management
Authority to grant a Certificate of Environmental
Clearance on the grounds of future export of spent
pot liners in the absence of the required legislation
and without formal agreements with the countries
that may be affected,” he argued.
Like
several other presenters, Kenny urged the panel
to consider the feasibility of establishing a downstream
aluminium manufacturing industry in T&T instead
of a primary smelting facility.
“The
Union Industrial Estate that has now been cleared
of vegetation and graded might be considered the
prime site for such industries, a savings in scarce
land and energy,” he said.
He
suggested a regional aluminium industry more in
line with the vision of the late Dr Eric Williams,
consisting of smelting facilities in Guyana and
downstream industries in T&T and Jamaica. Guyana,
he argued, would be better suited to handle a smelter
facility because of its large size, whereas smelters
in T&T would not augur well for a country with
one of the highest population densities in the world.
The
Trinidad Guardian
Sunday 10th December, 2006
Copyright
©2006 TheTrinidad Guardian. All Rights Reserved.
