Guyana’s oil spill response bolstered after US-led support, training

Tactical and operational support provided by the United States Government has advanced and fortified Guyana’s national response to oil spills, as the new petroleum industry flourishes.
In December 2019, Guyana officially became an oil-producing nation, which presented new challenges like the possibility of oil spills and other disasters.
The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) Headquarters on Monday, provided a recap on the series of training and support provided to 231 persons from over 30 agencies by the United States Coast Guard in building capacity to handle such matters. From June 2021 to April 2022, these efforts have addressed gaps in Guyana’s management of any oil spills.
CDC Director General (ag), Major Loring Benons posited that a successful national oil spill contingency plan exercise was conducted, through support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Coast Guard.
Participating agencies included the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), Guyana Fire Service (GFS), Guyana Police Force (GPF), Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard, Maritime Administration (MARAD), Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“The intention of the exercise was to test Guyana’s capabilities to respond to oil spill scenarios…Technical support was also provided by the Response Group, which is an international incident and crisis management entity. The exercise sought to identify strengths, weaknesses and lessons learnt to enhance the plan, thereby providing all stakeholders to be ready, to respond effectively and efficiently,” Benons outlined.
United States Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch has committed her Government’s support in sharing expertise for future initiatives.
“The United States supports the responsible development and utilisation of natural resources. Therefore, we positively responded to a request from the Government of Guyana to provide essential training to members of the CDC and the National Oil Spill Committee to strengthen Guyana’s Oil Spill Contingency Plan.”
She further noted, “We are committed to providing the tools to Guyana to enhance its capacity in this area and it is a sign of our commitment to regional security and environmental protection…This bilateral engagement should not be, by any means, a one-time intervention.”
A quantity of supplies was also donated by the US to the CDC for its disaster management efforts.
The National Oil Spill Contingency Plan for Guyana was handed over to Government back in October 2020, after key input from a series of stakeholders, adding a layer of disaster preparedness for the country.
Work on the finished plan was months in the making and involved the input of many key stakeholders including the Maritime Administrative Department (MARAD), Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and the Civil Defence Commission (CDC).