EPA can adequately respond to environmental disasters – Persaud

The Environmental Protec-tion Agency (EPA) has the manpower and the technical know-how to react to environmental disasters, Natural Resources Minis-ter Robert Persaud has said.

He also said the EPA is always looking at enhancing its capacity in this regard and is closer, now more than ever, to acquiring a full staff complement.

These and several other disclosures were made by the minister and several heads of agencies which fall under the Natural Resources Ministry when they appeared before the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural Resources yesterday.

The minister’s comments on the competence of the EPA to address environmental disasters were in light of the fact that the last few years have seen several companies expressing increased interest in the prospect of drilling Guyana’s offshore basin.

Oil companies currently exploring prospects in Guyana include CGX Energy Inc, Pacific Rubiales, Tullow Oil Ltd,