Americas News
Bahamas Officials Investigating Another Oil Spill
Bahamas officials are investigating an oil spill off Grand Bahama island, the nation's fourth spill in the past three months, and the second involving the Bahamas Oil Refining Company (BORCO), local news site Tribune 242 reports.
The new spill, which occurred over the weekend, is believed to originate from a pipeline containing oily residue.
BORCO said the pipeline had previously been used for Bunker C heavy fuel oil (HFO), but that it had been closed down and emptied about three weeks ago.
The National Oil Spill Advisory Committee is reviewing actions to respond to the spill, and a fly-over revealed no signs of contamination.
An accident near BORCO's site on Grand Bahama during refuelling from a bunker barge last month spilled 210 gallons of oil, according to officials.
The National Resources Defence Council has called for Bahamanians to protect the country's resources, including underwater reefs, from oil spills.
In December, a Mediterranean Shipping Company vessel leaked oil off the Grand Bahama coast, and another incident at a Rock Sound, Eleuthera fuel facility run by Bahamas Electricity Corporation spilled about 70,000 gallons of fuel onto the ground.
