EPA and other agencies conduct further tests at Crane homes affected by suspected oil seepage

Oct 22, 2024 News

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By Rehanna Ramsay and Davina Bagot

Kaieteur News –  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday visited the homes of West Demerara residents to collect more samples of the oily substance seeping through their floors.

When Kaieteur News visited the home of Basmatie Singh, in Crane, the woman was sitting in her back yard, contemplating her next move as officers from the EPA, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Ministry of Health and Civil Defence Commission (CDC) conducted inspections in her home.

Two men, without any type of protective gear were breaking the woman’s floor tiles in what used to be her living room to provide the EPA with samples of the substance that covered the bottom of the tile. A few minutes into the activity, the men complained of a burning sensation which quickly prompted them to reach for face masks.

Outside of Singh’s home, officers of GGMC gathered samples of dirt surrounding the house for testing.

This newspaper understands that the agencies will be conducting tests to determine whether the samples have volatile organic compounds present including sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide.

Head of the EPA’s oil and gas department, Joel Gravesande told Kaieteur News, “We just want to see how much is present so we can make our determination, because its more than if it’s present; it’s how much is present so we can make any determination. The data needs to be analysed as well as our visual observation then we can make our determination…We will have to look at the data as well as our visual inspection and then make a scientific determination.”

 

Gravesande could not say when those test results would be ready.

“At this point, I won’t be able to say as I don’t do the testing, myself. It has to go through the process,” he explained.

This is the third on-site visit that the EPA and other agencies made to the home Ms. Singh shares with her son. A team from the EPA, GGMC and ExxonMobil Guyana Limited (EMGL) visited Singh’s home on October 8.

The team had conducted tests and took samples of the substance for further testing offsite. The family was later informed by the EPA during a second visit to their home on October 11 that the living room area was high in Sulphur Dioxide.

The Singhs’ have expressed concerns for their health since Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), according to the American Lung Association, is a gaseous air pollutant composed of sulfur and oxygen. “SO2 forms when sulfur-containing fuel such as coal, petroleum oil, or diesel is burned,” the Association said.

Inhaling this gas can be extremely dangerous to human health causing wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness and other problems. According to the American Lung Association, “Long-term exposure at high levels increases respiratory symptoms and reduces the ability of the lungs to function.”

Both Basmatie and her son reported experiencing a burning sensation of the eyes and nose from the fumes emanating from the substance seeping into their home. Basmatie particularly, has complained of experiencing symptoms such as nausea and headache. Giving an update on her health, Singh told Kaieteur News that a doctor was also among the visiting team from the Ministry of Health on Monday.

“The doctor that come from the Ministry of Health talk to me today and said that they will do some tests to ensure that you know, everything is ok health wise. He said they will pay for the test to be done private,” Singh related.

The Singhs’ home is located a short distance away from where American oil giant, ExxonMobil has laid a 12-inch pipeline. The pipeline is connected to the Liza One and Liza Two Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessels (FPSO) offshore. It will transport gas to the Wales Development site.

In August, Exxon completed hooking up the pipeline to the two FPSOs. The company had said it would pump an earthen gas- like nitrogen- along with water into the structure, until the construction of the gas plants is completed at Wales.

Another resident of Crane Housing Scheme whose home was affected by the strange seepage was also visited by the technical team. Nandanie Singh said the officers collected samples from her home. It is the second time the EPA visited her home which she shares with her extended family.

“Last week, after the EPA visit I start seeing more substance coming up through the floor tiles…I started feeling sick, I had a headache, sore throat, runny nose and fever but I drank a Cetamol and I get a kind of relief,”  she said.

The young woman said that this time when the EPA team returned, they were accompanied by other agencies.

“They collected soil and so on for testing, they also told us to watch to see if anything coming up and if it does, not to wipe it up like I usually do, let them come and collect it for testing,” she said.   The young woman expressed eagerness at getting the results of the sample tests from the agencies.

“We just want to ensure that this is not something that we should worry about because we want to move forward with our lives in peace,” She said

 

(EPA and other agencies conduct further tests at Crane homes affected by suspected oil seepage)

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• CDC, Crane, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), EPA, Exxon, gas-to-energy, GGMC, oil, Residents, seepage

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