Residents'
protests stop pipeline work
By Ariti Jankie,
South
Bureau
Trinidad Express
Port
Spain
Petroleumworldtt.com
06 24 07
Petrotrin has suspended work on the maintenance
and upgrading of pipelines at Edward Trace, Moruga,
following protests by villagers.
A company official said yesterday work was stopped
on Wednesday following two days of protest by angry
residents, who called on the company to address
safety, relocation of houses and compensation to
homeowners.
The villagers vowed to continue the protest until
Petrotrin met their demands.
The State-owned oil company official, who requested
anonymity, said a meeting was scheduled to take
place at Santa Flora on Tuesday to decide a way
forward. He said the gas lines running at Edward
Trace were old and some had leaks.
"The lines have to be changed and we are
looking for ways of doing so without disruption
to the lives of the people in the area," he
said.
Security officer Richard Caesar, based at Moruga
Composite School, said the fear was that the gas
lines would endanger the lives of villagers.
'We
have heard of gaslines exploding in the Penal
district and the fear element has gripped the community
already," he said, adding that the village
had more than 350 families who would be adversely
affected by the pipelines.
"There are open trenches at the roadside
and with the heavy rains it has become extremely
dangerous to motorists as well as residents, including
young children," Caesar said.
Trinidad
Express
Saturday,
June 23rd 2007
Copyright
©2007 Trinidad Express. All Rights Reserved.
