New complaints about
survey barge
PORT SPAIN
Petroleumworldtt.com
02 17 08
Claxton Bay fishermen are calling on the National
Energy Corporation (NEC) to explain why a barge
involved in soil testing in the Gulf of Paria,
is not equipped with lights.
The
French company Saipen has been conducting soil
testing surveys in the gulf over the last
two days as part of the NEC’s project to
build a port on the west coast extension of the
Pt Lisas industrial estate.
One day after physicist Dr Peter Vine was thrown
into the sea after boarding the barge to protest
the soil testing, fishermen and villagers of Pranz
Gardens, Couva, were claiming that the NEC is flouting
safety laws.
Fisherman Bhadase Sooknanan said the barge is
anchored in the offshore channel, leading to the
Claxton Bay jetty.
“That is where all the fishermen pass with
their boats to get to the jetty. It is our channel
to reach shore and they have that barge there in
the water with no lights. It is dangerous. The
barge has no lights and one of these days an accident
will happen,” Sooknanan said.
Fisherman
Dexter Appoo said that already fishermen have
had near misses with the barge. “We
were coming in last night and we had to swerve
to avoid it. We want the barge out of there,” Appoo
said.
Vine, who lectures at the University of the West
Indies, said that NEC and Essar Steel have promised
to work in tandem with environmental laws. However,
he said that already surveys are being done without
the right safety protocols being adopted.
Vine said that the workmen on board the vessel
were not dressed safely. He said when he went aboard
on Thursday some of the workmen were wearing rubber
boots and cloth caps.
“How can we trust them when they are not
following basic health, safety and environmental
regulations,” Vine said.
NEC
president Prakash Saith could not be reached
for comment as an administrative assistant at
the
NEC said that he was out of the country. NEC’s
project engineer Vijai Lall was also out of the
country and was therefore unavailable.
However, in an earlier interview, Lall said that
surveys and soil testing were needed to construct
the port. He said that the port will facilitate
export operations after the Essar steel mill is
built.
Defending
NEC’s decision to build the port
in the disputed area, Lall said that the 75-acre
western coastline was the only place where a port
could be built.
He said that it was not feasible to construct
the port on the eastern or northern coasts, and
it could not be built on the southern coast because
it acted as a channel flow from the South American
mainland.
Story
by Radhica Sookraj from The Trinidad Guardian
The
Trinidad Guardian
Saturday 16th February, 2008
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