AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums The Cayes Environment DRILLING FOR OIL OFF AC? NOOOOOO ......... !!!!!

Just to further the discussion, could it not be possible that if the people of Belize realized they had a significant resource that would benefit them, then could that not be an even greater incentive to correct the corruption in goverment?
The potential of the resource and the corruption are two separate issues, although related, that deserve sufficient consideration and not rejecting one and accepting the other before all facts and options are considered and understood.

Bywarren yes life is simple for the simpleminded.
I've been diving on the gulf oil rigs and they are quite an attraction, but only because there is nothing else there. They don't have pristine reef just murky gulf polluted by the Mississippi river run off and that makes the oil platform the best dive site around.
I have no doubt the rigs here would run like swiss clocks because everything else in the country runs trouble free.
and of course the revenue would definitely go to making the infrastructure of the country better as all these revenue generating projects do.
It does seem like a no brainier.
Put in oil wells at the reef Its all just win win.

Also a quote from the Belize Times "In the PUP's 1998 manifesto, we declared that if there were oil in commercial quantities, we would find it. We did and today the oil industry has provided $104,688,076.69 to the government. By any measure this is a lot of money."

Again, I am not advocating drilling offshore in Belize at this time. I am only suggesting that before people form their opinions, they gather all the facts.

WOW $104,688.076.69

Wonder where all that went

Good question. But if someone were to offer me millions of dollars, I would not turn it down because I was afraid it might get stollen. I would accept it and try to keep it from being stollen.

Byron, I too have thought along the same lines as you on the oil issue, but came to the conclusion it would all get stolen or diverted into the same peoples pockets, so the risk isn't worth the reward.

If the money went into the Country rather than the pockets of the chosen few I'd be all for it - IF it was done right. Belize would get the infrastructure it needs, schooling for all kids, elecricity, water, food and jobs for all, great social security and ritirement funds, zero crime and it's rich and diverse culture could thrive. Can that happen.

Belize needs a Department of Justice.

If you want the price of Belizean gas to go down, based on Belizean oil production, then you will need a Belizean refinery.

Absolutely. That amount of money spent honestly would have a tremendous impact on Belize. Even if it just went towards our borrowings on the world stage it would have had a considerable impact, and would have been widely reported outside this country.

I wonder what went wrong?

Why don't you organize a citizen's coalition and do a forensic audit?