– seeks public’s feedback before August 14

By Telesha Ramnarine

THE Mayor and City Council (M&CC) is proposing to implement its first set of oil and gas by-laws which Mayor Ubraj Narine said will protect the environment and result in other major benefits to the City.

Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle on Thursday, the mayor said that the proposed by-laws are further intended to look out for the interests of city residents, so far as job creation and other matters are concerned.

The by-laws are expected to be stitched into Chapter 28:01 of the Municipal District and Councils Act (the laws governing the City Council), once they have been accepted and approved.

To this end, the mayor said notices have been placed at strategic points across the city to encourage the public to provide feedback on the proposed laws. “We don’t pass the by-laws without consultation with the public and relevant stakeholders, so we’ve placed notices at several places to encourage the public to send us their comments,” he said.

After the public consultation is over by August 14, 2020, the by-laws will be sent to the Minister of Communities for his approval and possible fine-tuning.
Town Clerk (Ag) Sherry Jerrick offered that the Communities Minister may possibly even send the by-laws to the Legal Affairs Ministry to ensure that they are not contradicting any previous by-laws.

Meanwhile, the mayor said the City Council cannot afford to lose revenue from the booming oil and gas sector in Guyana, and hence the creation of the by-laws.
According to Council’s proposal, the by-laws are being enacted for the purpose of regulating construction and operations of any oil and gas company in the city. Its purpose is to provide building regulations, protocols for operational licences/permits and interim spot checking function for health and safety aspects of the work and protection of the environment, persons, communities and properties.
Any building to be erected for the purpose of oil and gas will first have to be approved by the City Council so that feasibility studies can be done of the area where the building should be erected.

An investigation report is required before commencement of construction of all commercial and industrial buildings which will be at the cost of the investors and owners.
Erections of silos, according to the proposed by-laws, must be fully pressurized, waterproof and built to meet international, industrial standards, and are to be established on a firm, solid ground which should not be subjected to flooding.

All pipes and piping material, precursors and chemicals entering Georgetown is subjected to tax payable to the City Council.
Any form of transportation operating in the city under any oil and gas company, subsidiary or contracting company, will be subjected to an operational licence issued by the M&CC annually, and any form of heavy duty vehicle operating in the city will have to utilize roadways from 19:00hrs to 07:00 hrs.

The M&CC wants to be able to sue, with claims, any company for damage of property, and obstruction of the environment.
According to the proposed by-laws, precautions are to be taken to avoid land, water and air pollution which, as a result of breaching of standards, the M&CC will put a stop to the operations with immediate effect. The company and builders will be liable to a fine and will be taken to court with imprisonment of five years.

Furthermore, if an oil spill affects Georgetown, the Council wants to be able to proceed with filing of a lawsuit against any oil and gas company for any desired amount. Waste will be disposed of using the recycling plant or any other way which will not cause harm or obstructions to the environment, persons or property.
Inspections will be carried out annually by the City Council prior to the issuing of any forms of licence or permit. Oil and gas companies that operate within Georgetown is subjected to an operational licence issued by the M&CC annually, subject to an EPA approved permit.

While all licenses will be issued by the clerk on the approval of the Finance Committee or by the Council, it does not include the coverage for general rates and taxes or any other taxes.