By Sue-Ann Wayow
A FOUR-day national workshop on Oil Pollution, Preparedness, Response and Cooperation (OPRC) has been launched.
The workshop is being conducted by the Maritime Services Division of the Ministry of Works and Transport chaired by Director of the Maritime Services Division Ronald Alfred.
The workshop seeks to bolster the effectiveness of the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan and assist government and industry stakeholders to better assess their level of oil spill response planning and readiness management, in relation to commonly agreed criteria and implementation of international best management practices for oil spill clean-up.
In his feature address at the workshop’s launch on Tuesday, Minister in the Ministry of Works and Transport Richie Sookhai reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to ensuring a framework promoting the sustainable management and use of ocean spaces.
Sookhai said “Hydrocarbon spills can occur unexpectedly or even illegally from ships, offshore installations or other marine sources. At that stage, our best chance is to control damage by implementing a quick, effective and well-coordinated response and clean-up effort. This involves close collaboration among Government agencies, industry stakeholders and specialist contractors who are well trained to execute the appropriate response strategy.”
The workshop is being facilitated in collaboration with international stakeholders including: Regional Activity Centre/Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Information and Training Centre – Wider Caribbean Region (RAC/REMPEITC-Caribe), on behalf of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and The United Nations Regional Coordinating Unit for the Caribbean Environment Program (UNEP-CAR/RCU).
Workshop participants include subject matter experts from the US Coast Guard and Polaris Applied Sciences, USA as well as representatives from the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, Institute of Marine Affairs, Environmental Management Authority, Office of Disaster Preparedness, T&T Coast Guard, Fisheries Division, and National Petroleum Marketing Company.
AZP News is an independent news organisation that is not affiliated with any big business and depends solely on advertising to pay our bills. Therefore, we are asking for the generosity of our readers to help us with small donations of any amount, but we will be happy with US$1, US$5 or US$10. Click Here to Donate
