The Department of Environmental Health Services has in its possession a report that addresses whether there are harmful substances in emissions from the Bacardi rum manufacturing plant near Coral Harbour.
Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Environment Ron Pinder told the Journal recently that he would not disclose the contents of that report, nor would he say whether the report confirms the presence of those harmful substances, including cyanide in those emissions.
“Environmental Health has had several meetings with [Bacardi and the nearby Venice Bay community] and the matter is under investigation,” Mr. Pinder said. “Because itﾒs now a legal matter I would not go into detail as far as indicating what were the findings of the investigations.
“But suffice it to say that any kind of industrial operation has waste as a by-product, and if it is not disposed of correctly, or if the process of disposing of the by-product is not constantly monitored, then you do have some emissions that can be harmful both to human beings as well as to the general environment.”
That report may support findings outlined in an affidavit filed by attorney Romauld Ferreira in the ongoing legal battle between Venice Bay, his client, and Bacardi.
Mr. Pinder, while reluctant to discuss a matter that is sub judicae, did give this summation of his understanding of events.
“What Venice Bay is seeking, from what I understand, is further punitive damages as well as an entire remediation of damage that was done over the course of years,” he said.
“Also, from what I understand, talks have broken down between the two parties and now the company sees it fit to take Bacardi to court to resolve the matter once and for all.”
Roosevelt and Carolyn Whyms, and their company Venice Bay, have only a single desire, according to Mr. Ferreira.
“For (Bacardi) to stop, plain and simple. This isnﾒt about the money.”
The lawsuit, filed back in June, has been adjourned to December 6 in the Supreme Court before Justice John Lyons.
The suit alleges that from about March 1999, Bacardi has “wrongfully caused or permitted noxious and offensive particulates, fumes, vapours and smoke to be discharged into the atmosphere from their premises.”
Venice Bay wants an injunction to restrain Bacardi from manufacturing rum or rum products in such a manner as to continue to cause the discharge of hazardous, offensive and noxious fumes onto property owned by Venice Bay, its servants or agents.
The lawsuit also seeks to claim damages, costs and interest.
A zealous Mr. Ferreira told the Journal on Wednesday he had no intention of letting the matter rest until his client has had satisfaction from Bacardi in the matter.
“In the end, good must triumph over evil, right must triumph over wrong,” he said. “And the interests of the country must be paramount.”
As for what he expects once the matter resumes in December, Mr. Ferreira said he anticipates “frivolous legal applications that donﾒt speak to the substantive issue to be tried.”
He disclosed that Venice Bay has kept an “environmental incident log” detailing every single incident in which the fumes from Bacardi impacted his clients.
“From 1999 weﾒve been collating evidence against them,” Mr. Ferreira said.
In his estimation, Bacardi has evinced no regard for The Bahamas, its environment or its inhabitants. In fact, he said, Bacardi had a chance to settle the lawsuit discretely, but blew that chance by sending a lawyer Mr. Ferreira described as “arrogant” to deal with the issue.
Mr. Pinder spoke to the Journal on the steps of the House of Assembly Wednesday, as he prepared to take his seat for that bodyﾒs first meeting after a traditional summer break.
He said that in the event that Venice Bay is successful, the courts would determine the remediation that Bacardi would have to conduct.
“The Department of Environmental Health Services regulates such companies as Bacardi with respect to their overall operation as well as the collection and disposal of their by-products.”
Bacardi released a brief statement on June 16, saying the company regretted that the matter involving Venice Bay was in litigation.
“Because of that, we are limited in what we may say about the matter,” the company said. “We will vigorously defend any legal actions against the company.”
By: Quincy Parker, The Bahama Journal
