The Caribbean region including Jamaica and other “Small Island Developing States” lack the resources to combat a major oil spill, delegates to a regional convention on oil spill prevention and response have been warned.
Opening the convention to discuss oil spill prevention, preparedness and response in the Gulf of Mexico, keynote speaker Christopher Cargill, chairman of the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, said Jamaica and other islands in the region do not have access to vast amounts of resources to combat major oil spills of the magnitude of the BP Deepwater Horizon incident – which occurred two years ago this month in the Gulf of Mexico.
He told delegates: “We understand that the BP Deepwater Horizon incident involved 47,000 persons, 600 vessels and 120 aircraft and the responders had access to a spill liability trust fund.
“The development of a mechanism for co-operation is therefore a critical part of the preparedness in the region as Jamaica and other small states will have to rely heavily on their neighbours to the north for assistance in dealing with such events. ”
The objective of the session held in Kingston, Jamaica, early in April was to further regional preparedness and cooperation to oversee the offshore oil exploration and exploitation industry and to improve oil spill response preparedness and capabilities.
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