Dr. Bethel Says Legal Woes Of AES Have No Bearing On Bahamas Proposal
Recently, the government of the Dominican Republic filed a final, updated complaint against AES in a Virginia court, seeking "compensatory damages for physical, mental and economic injuries."
The basic allegations of the lawsuit are that between late 2003 and early 2004, AES - through its subsidiaries - conspired to dump nearby 60,000 tons of industrial waste on pristine beaches in the Dominican Republic, damaging the environment, destroying the regional tourism product, and causing bodily harm to some residents of the areas.
"I don't think [the lawsuit] would have any impact whatsoever [on our consideration]," said Dr. Marcus Bethel, minister of energy and the environment, who spoke with the Bahama Journal on Tuesday.
"First of all, the issues are related to a subcontractor for AES who had responsibility for disposing of waste from a coal operated facility. Nothing here in The Bahamas being proposed has anything to do with coal so the whole setup and situations are quite different. So the legal concerns that have been expressed in another jurisdiction have little or no application here in The Bahamas with respect to what's being proposed here."
The basic allegations of the lawsuit are that between late 2003 and early 2004, AES - through its subsidiaries - conspired to dump nearby 60,000 tons of industrial waste on pristine beaches in the Dominican Republic, damaging the environment, destroying the regional tourism product, and causing bodily harm to some residents of the areas.
"I don't think [the lawsuit] would have any impact whatsoever [on our consideration]," said Dr. Marcus Bethel, minister of energy and the environment, who spoke with the Bahama Journal on Tuesday.
"First of all, the issues are related to a subcontractor for AES who had responsibility for disposing of waste from a coal operated facility. Nothing here in The Bahamas being proposed has anything to do with coal so the whole setup and situations are quite different. So the legal concerns that have been expressed in another jurisdiction have little or no application here in The Bahamas with respect to what's being proposed here."
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