Laurel Sutherland

-abductors got away with four heavy NorthFace travel bags South Rupununi, Guyana – When news broke of the kidnapping and armed robbery that took place at Bush Mouth, Region Nine, last year, it sent shockwaves across the country, leaving many in disbelief.

Contrary to what the developers of the Vreed-en-Hoop shore base have asserted, fishermen on Tuesday and Wednesday told Stabroek News that their fish pens have been fouled by mud and refuse thrown up by dredging off the  Demerara River mouth.

Coverden residents are relieved that the Environmental Assessment Board (EAB) has thrown out the EPA’s decision to not require an impact survey for a project to store radioactive materials in the East Bank Demerara (EBD) community.

Houston residents were yesterday told that Schlumberger Guyana Inc cannot go back in time to conduct an impact survey for its storage and calibration facility with radioactive sources as the process for an Environmental Assessment and Management Plan (EAMP) has now gotten underway.

It’s been just over a year since flooding devastated homes and farmlands across Guyana but Indigenous communities in regions Seven and Nine are still feeling the effects.

An updated Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) will likely have to be submitted to the Environment Protection Agency before any mining activity restarts at the Marudi Mountains in the Rupununi, says Kemraj Parsram, the agency’s Executive Director.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently warned that exploration and development of new oil and gas fields must stop this year if the world is to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

Photos by Orlando Charles It was a normal sunny mid-morning in Georgetown.

Once bustling with bars, snackettes and miners, the landing which serves as the core of the gold mining community in the Marudi Mountains in the Rupununi has become eerily desolate – a ghost town filled with nothing but empty shacks and a handful of persons as a years-long stalemate between prospectors and the regulatory authorities continues.

Farms and several houses at Matthews Ridge in Region One have been left inundated after a reservoir belonging to Chinese-owned Guyana Manganese Inc (GMI) collapsed, releasing a torrent of water that forced some families to climb trees in order to survive.

As the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) continues to pursue the goal of achieving reduced mercury use in mining, Commissioner Newell Dennison has signaled that complete eradication of the chemical in local mining activities may not be possible.

With the impending arrival of a consignment of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines, which are approved for children age 12 and older, the government has started seeking the consent of parents to administer vaccines to eligible children in the public school system.

Fed up of medical staff and several severely ill patients being locked out of the Linden Complex Hospital (LHC) due to new COVID-19 vaccination requirements, over a hundred residents of Region Ten yesterday blocked the Mackenzie/Wismar Bridge in protest.

Employees of the Linden Hospital Complex and members of the public in Region Ten were yesterday denied entry to the premises after they failed to produce proof of vaccination against COVID-19.

Although the COVID-19 emergency measure restricting access to government services to unvaccinated persons came into effect since August 1st, the implementation has been uneven, with some public institutions swiftly moving towards enforcement, some now doing so and others still mulling whether they should proceed.

When 39-year-old Tanesha Fredericks started working at a local subsidiary of Trinidad Oil Company – Centipede Offshore (Guyana) Inc, she had no idea that several months later she would be unable to turn on a tap because of the injuries she would sustain as a result of handling toxic chemicals and cleaning agents without proper gloves.

The government yesterday used its majority in the National Assembly to pass amendments to the legislation for the registration of births and deaths, including simplifying the process for adults without original documents to acquire birth certificates.

The newly announced COVID-19 measure requiring unvaccinated persons to make an appointment before visiting a ministry or government agency has been met with mixed reactions, with some welcoming the decision while others have described it as unfair.

The family of cancer patient Roll David thought the 16-year-old had escaped the worst after beating COVID-19 back in January but the teen died on Thursday after becoming re-infected with the virus.

With the pipelines that form part of the massive proposed US$900 million gas-to-energy project having the capability to transport up to 120 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) of gas from Liza Phase 1 and Liza Phase 2 FPSOs, studies are being done to consider alternative uses of the natural gas.